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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: wake · last · mate · bound · bank · coach · net · bark

  1. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. last — finally
  5. bank — for money
  6. net — after costs
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. last — final
  9. bound — obliged
  10. bound — tied together
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. wake — a trail
  15. mate — a partner
  16. bank — for money
  17. net — in sport
  18. mate — a friend
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. net — for catching
  21. bank — of a river
  22. bark — to shout
  23. bound — certain
  24. last — to go on

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