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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 120 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: track · stick · race · saw · court · chest · rock · object

  1. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. saw — the tool
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. track — to keep track
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. saw — the tool
  7. object — an aim
  8. race — a contest
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. object — a thing
  11. object — to protest
  12. chest — of your body
  13. chest — of your body
  14. track — a song
  15. race — humankind
  16. track — a path
  17. rock — a stone
  18. chest — a box
  19. race — the arms race
  20. court — for sport
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. court — of a king
  24. court — of law

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