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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.

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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: straw · court · key · band · toast · season · coach · race

  1. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  22. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. band — a music group
  3. key — for a lock
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. court — for sport
  6. court — of law
  7. race — a contest
  8. race — humankind
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. race — the arms race
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. key — the most important part
  16. season — in sport
  17. toast — the most admired
  18. band — a ring
  19. key — in music
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. toast — bread
  22. toast — a drink to someone
  23. court — of a king
  24. season — to add flavour

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