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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: wound · roll · stem · kid · bowl · net · racket · coach

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. kid — to tease
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. roll — a list
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. wound — an injury
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. stem — to come from
  13. wound — an injury
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. net — for catching
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. net — in sport
  21. net — after costs
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. roll — a cake

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