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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: rash · coach · date · mine · bowl · season · mug · plane

  1. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. Where did you ________________ them?
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. mine — for digging
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. season — of the year
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. season — in sport
  12. rash — hasty
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. date — the fruit
  16. plane — a tool
  17. mug — to rob
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. rash — a series
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. mug — a cup
  23. mug — a face
  24. date — on the calendar

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