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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: court · scale · track · bat · season · stem · swing · wave

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. season — in sport
  3. stem — to come from
  4. swing — music
  5. court — of a king
  6. track — to keep track
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. scale — in music
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. season — of the year
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. swing — to play on
  15. scale — size or range
  16. track — a song
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. track — a path
  20. court — of law
  21. court — for sport
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. swing — in golf

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