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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: last · hide · coach · branch · band · cue · track · tear

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. last — finally
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. tear — from crying
  7. band — a music group
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. track — a path
  10. tear — from crying
  11. cue — a hint
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. track — to keep track
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. tear — to rip
  17. track — a song
  18. last — to go on
  19. band — a ring
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. cue — for pool
  22. cue — a signal
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. branch — a division

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