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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: deal · swing · mouse · rash · content · coach · kick · sharp

  1. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. swing — in golf
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. content — the amount
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. rash — hasty
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. deal — to handle
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. sharp — clever
  12. rash — a series
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. swing — music
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. content — happy
  21. kick — in football
  22. swing — to play on
  23. mouse — for a computer
  24. deal — an agreement

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com