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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 116 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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. band — a music group
  4. bound — certain
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. bound — tied together
  8. mug — a face
  9. band — a ring
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. cold — not warm
  12. pound — a weight
  13. mug — to rob
  14. bound — obliged
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. mug — a cup
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. cue — a hint
  20. cue — a signal
  21. cold — an illness
  22. lean — thin
  23. cue — for pool
  24. lean — to bend

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