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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: cold · racket · pop · roll · mug · can · squash · coach

  1. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. squash — the sport
  4. mug — a cup
  5. cold — an illness
  6. roll — a cake
  7. roll — a list
  8. squash — to crush
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. pop — to visit
  14. pop — music
  15. mug — to rob
  16. cold — not warm
  17. mug — a face
  18. pop — soda
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. can — to be able to
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. can — a tin
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. can — a tin

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