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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: ball · shower · row · leaves · kid · trunk · coach · band

  1. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. ball — a great time
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. band — a ring
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. shower — to wash
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. row — a line
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. shower — rain
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. row — to paddle
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. kid — to tease
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. kid — child
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. ball — a dance
  24. band — a music group

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