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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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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 · field · last · band · ruler · kick · kid · pound

  1. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. field — farmland
  3. field — for sport
  4. pound — a weight
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. kick — in football
  8. kid — to tease
  9. band — a ring
  10. last — final
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. kid — child
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. band — a music group
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. field — a subject
  18. last — to go on
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. last — finally

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