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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: board · land · coach · perch · season · court · branch · mark

  1. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. branch — a division
  3. board — to get on
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. court — of a king
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. court — for sport
  8. mark — a trace
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. season — of the year
  12. land — ground
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. mark — a grade
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. court — of law
  17. land — a country
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. season — in sport
  20. land — to come down
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. board — a committee
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. perch — the fish

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