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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.

Make a worksheet

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: bowl · band · wound · court · coach · staff · pitcher · wind

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. court — of a king
  5. band — a ring
  6. band — a music group
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. staff — employees
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. court — for sport
  17. wound — an injury
  18. court — of law
  19. staff — a stick
  20. wound — an injury
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. staff — employees
  23. wind — moving air
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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