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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: row · scale · track · race · fall · fine · drill · capital

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. fine — all right
  3. scale — in music
  4. fall — to drop
  5. fine — high quality
  6. capital — a city
  7. drill — the tool
  8. fall — the season
  9. track — a path
  10. drill — army training
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. fall — to drop
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. capital — money
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. track — to keep track
  17. track — a song
  18. scale — size or range
  19. row — to paddle
  20. race — the arms race
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. drill — a practice
  23. race — a contest
  24. row — a line

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