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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 120 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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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: wind · arm · track · court · chair · season · mark · tear

  1. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. season — in sport
  4. track — to keep track
  5. tear — to rip
  6. wind — moving air
  7. wind — moving air
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. track — a song
  12. court — for sport
  13. mark — a trace
  14. court — of a king
  15. chair — a leader
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. court — of law
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. tear — from crying
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. tear — from crying
  23. mark — a grade
  24. track — a path

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