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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: track · court · capital · lie · wound · scale · patient · season

  1. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. wound — an injury
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. court — of a king
  5. season — of the year
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. lie — to recline
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. scale — size or range
  10. track — to keep track
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. wound — an injury
  14. capital — money
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. track — a song
  18. season — in sport
  19. scale — in music
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. capital — a city
  22. court — for sport
  23. court — of law
  24. season — to add flavour

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