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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: kid · band · wave · bore · calf · coach · degree · bass

  1. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. band — a music group
  3. kid — child
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. bore — to drill
  6. degree — from a university
  7. bass — the fish
  8. kid — to tease
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. band — a ring
  14. bore — to tire
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. degree — temperature
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. bass — low music
  21. wave — of the sea
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. degree — an amount
  24. calf — a young animal

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