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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: board · track · stem · mate · wake · game

  1. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. game — wild animals
  5. mate — a partner
  6. mate — a friend
  7. track — to keep track
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. game — a match
  10. track — a song
  11. wake — a trail
  12. board — a committee
  13. track — a path
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. stem — to come from
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. board — to get on
  18. stem — of a plant

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