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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: land · last · net · spell · wound · spring · mark · coach

  1. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. net — for catching
  3. land — ground
  4. land — to come down
  5. mark — a trace
  6. net — in sport
  7. mark — a grade
  8. spring — the season
  9. spring — a coil
  10. spell — magic
  11. spell — letters
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. wound — an injury
  15. land — a country
  16. last — final
  17. last — to go on
  18. spring — of water
  19. last — finally
  20. wound — an injury
  21. spell — a short time
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. net — after costs

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