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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: bowl · current · roll · track · chest · fall · drill · race

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. race — humankind
  3. current — happening now
  4. roll — a list
  5. drill — army training
  6. drill — the tool
  7. track — a path
  8. fall — to drop
  9. race — the arms race
  10. chest — of your body
  11. fall — the season
  12. track — to keep track
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. current — electric
  16. roll — a cake
  17. drill — a practice
  18. fall — to drop
  19. track — a song
  20. race — a contest
  21. chest — of your body
  22. current — of water
  23. chest — a box
  24. roll — on a roll

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