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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 · mate · season · bass · track · court · dip · deal

  1. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. season — of the year
  3. season — in sport
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. mate — to breed
  7. wound — an injury
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. court — of a king
  10. deal — to handle
  11. court — for sport
  12. wound — an injury
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. court — of law
  15. bass — the fish
  16. mate — a partner
  17. dip — to sink
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. track — a path
  20. track — a song
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. mate — a friend
  24. bass — low music

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