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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: staff · board · coach · net · bowl · season · wind · bat

  1. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  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. coach — a trainer
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. staff — employees
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. wind — moving air
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. net — after costs
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. net — in sport
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. wind — moving air
  14. board — a committee
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. net — for catching
  17. staff — employees
  18. staff — a stick
  19. bat — the animal
  20. season — of the year
  21. board — to get on
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. season — in sport
  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