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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 120 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: bound · season · wake · ground · net · racket

  1. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. wake — a trail
  3. season — in sport
  4. bound — certain
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. ground — a position
  8. bound — tied together
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. ground — crushed
  11. net — in sport
  12. bound — obliged
  13. net — after costs
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. ground — the earth
  16. net — for catching
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. racket — a loud noise

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