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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: race · track · pass · bark · wind · staff · swing · row

  1. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. track — a song
  3. staff — employees
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. wind — moving air
  6. staff — a stick
  7. race — the arms race
  8. track — to keep track
  9. row — a line
  10. row — to paddle
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. track — a path
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. swing — in golf
  15. staff — employees
  16. swing — music
  17. wind — moving air
  18. race — humankind
  19. pass — a permit
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. race — a contest
  22. bark — to shout
  23. pass — to succeed
  24. swing — to play on

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