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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: coach · land · court · pitch · season · pop · bark · rush

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. season — in sport
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. land — a country
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. bark — to shout
  8. pitch — completely
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. season — of the year
  13. court — of a king
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. pop — soda
  16. land — ground
  17. pop — to visit
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. land — to come down
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. court — of law
  22. pop — music
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. rush — hurry

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