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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 · cabinet · hand · spring · date · bound · content · track

  1. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. date — the fruit
  5. track — a path
  6. spring — the season
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. bound — obliged
  10. track — a song
  11. content — happy
  12. spring — a coil
  13. spring — of water
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. bound — tied together
  16. hand — help
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. hand — in cards
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. track — to keep track
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. bound — certain
  24. content — the amount

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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