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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

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

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. bore — to drill
  8. ground — crushed
  9. wake — a trail
  10. ground — the earth
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. band — a ring
  17. ground — a position
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. bore — to tire
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. cold — not warm
  22. stem — to come from
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. cold — an illness

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