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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
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: patient · press · track · chest · file · fine · pitch · court

  1. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. court — for sport
  3. file — a tool
  4. file — a document
  5. court — of a king
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. fine — all right
  10. file — a line of people
  11. track — a song
  12. press — a publisher
  13. chest — of your body
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. chest — a box
  16. press — to push
  17. court — of law
  18. fine — high quality
  19. track — a path
  20. pitch — completely
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. chest — of your body
  24. press — newspapers

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