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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: coach · bass · court · spring · bank · pitch · last · pop

  1. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. bank — for money
  3. last — final
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. pop — soda
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. bass — the fish
  8. court — of a king
  9. pop — to visit
  10. court — for sport
  11. pitch — completely
  12. last — finally
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. court — of law
  15. spring — a coil
  16. bass — low music
  17. spring — of water
  18. bank — for money
  19. spring — the season
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. bank — of a river
  22. pop — music
  23. last — to go on
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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