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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: coach · fall · band · root · kid · straw · sharp · mouse

  1. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. band — a ring
  4. kid — to tease
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. fall — to drop
  8. fall — to drop
  9. root — of a plant
  10. fall — the season
  11. root — the cause
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. sharp — clever
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. kid — child
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. band — a music group
  24. coach — a trainer

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