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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: band · deal · wind · race · track · tear

  1. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — to handle
  2. track — to keep track
  3. race — a contest
  4. tear — from crying
  5. band — a ring
  6. wind — moving air
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. band — a music group
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. track — a path
  13. wind — moving air
  14. track — a song
  15. race — humankind
  16. race — the arms race
  17. tear — to rip
  18. tear — from crying

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