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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: patient · mate · court · bat · cue · wound · fine · pitcher

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. fine — high quality
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. mate — a partner
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. court — for sport
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. mate — to breed
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. wound — an injury
  11. court — of a king
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. fine — all right
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. cue — a signal
  17. cue — a hint
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. mate — a friend
  21. cue — for pool
  22. wound — an injury
  23. court — of law
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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