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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: last · track · row · wound · coach · face · nail · season

  1. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  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. track — a song
  2. track — a path
  3. season — of the year
  4. track — to keep track
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. wound — an injury
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. season — in sport
  11. last — to go on
  12. row — to paddle
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. face — part of the head
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. face — to confront
  18. last — finally
  19. face — to point toward
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. wound — an injury
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. last — final
  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