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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 116 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: band · mouse · coach · snap · kick · cold · content · mug

  1. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. band — a ring
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. mug — to rob
  6. mug — a face
  7. band — a music group
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. cold — an illness
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. cold — not warm
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. content — the amount
  15. mug — a cup
  16. kick — in football
  17. content — happy
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. snap — to click
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. mouse — the animal

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