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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: date · bore · coach · board · staff · band · object · race

  1. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. band — a music group
  3. band — a ring
  4. board — to get on
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. board — a committee
  10. bore — to tire
  11. object — to protest
  12. staff — a stick
  13. date — the fruit
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. bore — to drill
  16. race — humankind
  17. race — a contest
  18. object — an aim
  19. staff — employees
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. staff — employees
  22. race — the arms race
  23. object — a thing
  24. date — on the calendar

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