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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: pound · bay · net · coach · staff · hand · pop · mine

  1. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. My mare is ________________ in color.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. pop — soda
  3. staff — employees
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. staff — employees
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. pound — a weight
  9. pop — to visit
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. hand — in cards
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. hand — help
  15. mine — for digging
  16. net — after costs
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. staff — a stick
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. bay — a horse colour
  22. net — for catching
  23. pop — music
  24. net — in sport

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