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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: stem · coach · court · bank · wound · spell · present · calf

  1. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. court — of a king
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. spell — letters
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. bank — for money
  10. court — for sport
  11. present — the time now
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. present — there
  14. bank — for money
  15. spell — a short time
  16. court — of law
  17. bank — of a river
  18. present — a gift
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. wound — an injury
  21. stem — to come from
  22. spell — magic
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. wound — an injury

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