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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: root · deal · track · race · cell · mouse

  1. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. track — to keep track
  3. root — of a plant
  4. cell — a phone
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. race — humankind
  8. root — the cause
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. race — a contest
  13. race — the arms race
  14. cell — in biology
  15. track — a song
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. root — of a word
  18. deal — to handle

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