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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · tear · coach · ball · plane · cabinet · cold · squash

  1. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. band — a music group
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. ball — a dance
  6. squash — the sport
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. band — a ring
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. tear — from crying
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. cold — not warm
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. ball — a great time
  15. squash — to crush
  16. tear — from crying
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. plane — a tool
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. tear — to rip
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. cold — an illness
  23. plane — an aircraft
  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