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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: mate · rest · shower · pass · coach · band · pound · last

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. pound — a weight
  4. pass — a permit
  5. band — a ring
  6. rest — a break
  7. mate — a friend
  8. last — final
  9. last — finally
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. rest — what's left
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. band — a music group
  18. rest — what's left
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. shower — rain
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. last — to go on
  23. mate — a partner
  24. mate — to breed

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