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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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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 · club · kick · snap · coach · rock · tear · bound

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. rock — a stone
  4. bound — tied together
  5. snap — to click
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. band — a ring
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. band — a music group
  12. club — for golf
  13. bound — certain
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. club — a group
  16. club — for dancing
  17. bound — obliged
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. tear — to rip
  20. tear — from crying
  21. kick — in football
  22. rock — music
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. band — a rubber band

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