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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: band · kid · calf · prune · cold · coach · foot · stock

  1. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. prune — to trim
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. prune — to trim
  6. foot — a measure
  7. kid — to tease
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. stock — goods
  12. band — a ring
  13. stock — shares
  14. cold — not warm
  15. kid — child
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. calf — of the leg
  20. band — a music group
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. cold — an illness
  23. foot — part of the body
  24. coach — a trainer

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