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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: cap · game · track · mine · coach · nail · pound · branch

  1. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. game — wild animals
  3. cap — a lid
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. track — to keep track
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. cap — a hat
  8. pound — a weight
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. cap — of ice
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. branch — a division
  15. track — a song
  16. mine — for digging
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. track — a path
  23. game — a match
  24. coach — a trainer

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