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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.

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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: coach · land · cap · racket · field · bulb · season · wave

  1. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. season — in sport
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. field — for sport
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. land — a country
  8. cap — of ice
  9. cap — a hat
  10. field — farmland
  11. cap — a lid
  12. season — of the year
  13. bulb — for light
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. field — a subject
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. land — to come down
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. land — ground
  24. racket — a loud noise

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