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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: stem · net · squash · band · last · coach · present · pound

  1. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. squash — the sport
  3. band — a ring
  4. stem — to come from
  5. net — after costs
  6. last — to go on
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. present — a gift
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. present — the time now
  13. band — a music group
  14. net — for catching
  15. present — there
  16. last — finally
  17. last — final
  18. pound — a weight
  19. squash — to crush
  20. net — in sport
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. stem — of a plant

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