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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: net · pass · rush · coach · spell · last · court · roll

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. roll — a list
  4. net — in sport
  5. spell — magic
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. net — for catching
  8. court — for sport
  9. rush — hurry
  10. court — of law
  11. last — final
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. spell — letters
  16. last — finally
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. roll — a cake
  20. court — of a king
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. spell — a short time
  23. pass — a permit
  24. last — to go on

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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