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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. drill — the tool
  3. track — a path
  4. race — humankind
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. rock — music
  7. track — a song
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. season — in sport
  10. track — to keep track
  11. race — the arms race
  12. root — of a plant
  13. rock — a stone
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. root — of a word
  16. root — the cause
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. wake — a trail
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. drill — army training
  21. drill — a practice
  22. race — a contest
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. season — of the year

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