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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: sharp · band · kid · net · roll · coach · hide · branch

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. band — a music group
  5. branch — a division
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. net — after costs
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. kid — child
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. sharp — clever
  18. roll — a list
  19. net — in sport
  20. band — a ring
  21. net — for catching
  22. roll — a cake
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. hide — to keep secret

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