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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: coach · calf · drill · pound · root · key · present · date

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  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. present — a gift
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. date — the fruit
  4. key — for a lock
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. root — the cause
  7. drill — a practice
  8. key — the most important part
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. pound — a weight
  15. present — there
  16. root — of a word
  17. root — of a plant
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. drill — the tool
  21. present — the time now
  22. drill — army training
  23. key — in music
  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