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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: hand · band · cap · rush · coach · field · squash · toast

  1. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. hand — help
  5. toast — a drink to someone
  6. squash — the sport
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. cap — of ice
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. toast — bread
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. band — a music group
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. cap — a hat
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. field — a subject
  17. hand — in cards
  18. cap — a lid
  19. field — farmland
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. band — a ring
  23. field — for sport
  24. rush — hurry

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