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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 120 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 · pit · sharp · pop · drill · band · bass · hand

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. pop — soda
  3. bass — low music
  4. hand — in cards
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. sharp — clever
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. band — a ring
  11. pit — in a race
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. pop — music
  14. pit — a hole
  15. drill — the tool
  16. drill — a practice
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. bass — the fish
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. hand — help
  23. drill — army training
  24. pop — to visit

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