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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
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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: kick · net · cap · wind · coach · lie · rush · court

  1. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. wind — moving air
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. kick — in football
  6. wind — moving air
  7. court — of law
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. rush — hurry
  11. net — in sport
  12. court — of a king
  13. net — for catching
  14. lie — to recline
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. court — for sport
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. cap — a lid
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. cap — of ice
  23. cap — a hat
  24. net — after costs

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