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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: trunk · race · stem · coach · band · season · deal · mate

  1. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  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. mate — to breed
  2. band — a music group
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. season — in sport
  6. band — a ring
  7. race — a contest
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. deal — to handle
  13. race — the arms race
  14. mate — a friend
  15. race — humankind
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. stem — to come from
  21. season — of the year
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. mate — a partner
  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