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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: track · squash · court · mate · date · bass · board · rock

  1. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. mate — a partner
  3. mate — to breed
  4. date — the fruit
  5. board — a committee
  6. court — of a king
  7. rock — music
  8. board — to get on
  9. track — to keep track
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. bass — low music
  12. court — of law
  13. mate — a friend
  14. track — a path
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. court — for sport
  18. rock — a stone
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. squash — to crush
  21. track — a song
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. bass — the fish
  24. date — on the calendar

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