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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 120 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: coach · march · tube · arm · season · hide · wind · court

  1. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. court — for sport
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. wind — moving air
  5. season — in sport
  6. court — of a king
  7. march — the month
  8. season — of the year
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. court — of law
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. wind — moving air
  16. march — music
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. tube — a container
  22. march — the month
  23. tube — the underground
  24. hide — animal skin

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