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

Word bank: track · race · wake · wind · chip · vault

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. race — humankind
  3. chip — to eat
  4. vault — a safe
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. race — the arms race
  8. wake — a trail
  9. wind — moving air
  10. track — a path
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. track — a song
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. track — to keep track
  16. chip — for betting
  17. wind — moving air
  18. chip — in a computer

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