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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: track · stand · key · clip · mate · race · row · craft

  1. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. mate — a friend
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. track — to keep track
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. craft — a skill
  8. clip — to cut
  9. track — a path
  10. key — for a lock
  11. mate — to breed
  12. clip — a video
  13. key — the most important part
  14. race — a contest
  15. clip — for paper
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. key — in music
  18. race — the arms race
  19. track — a song
  20. race — humankind
  21. mate — a partner
  22. row — a line
  23. craft — boats
  24. row — to paddle

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