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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 120 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 · coach · game · saw · club · mug · pop · stem

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. Where did you ________________ them?
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. club — a group
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. club — for dancing
  5. saw — the tool
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. kid — to tease
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. game — a match
  10. pop — music
  11. mug — a cup
  12. mug — a face
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. club — for golf
  16. game — wild animals
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. saw — the tool
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. pop — soda
  21. mug — to rob
  22. stem — to come from
  23. pop — to visit
  24. stem — a stem cell

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