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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: wound · pass · track · season · chest · press · court · lie

  1. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  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. lie — to recline
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. chest — of your body
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. pass — a permit
  9. track — a song
  10. wound — an injury
  11. chest — a box
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. court — of law
  14. season — of the year
  15. press — a publisher
  16. court — of a king
  17. track — a path
  18. chest — of your body
  19. press — to push
  20. season — in sport
  21. court — for sport
  22. pass — to succeed
  23. wound — an injury
  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