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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: hand · track · race · spell · saw · prune · bass · hide

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. race — humankind
  3. race — the arms race
  4. bass — low music
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. track — a song
  7. spell — a short time
  8. track — to keep track
  9. race — a contest
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. hand — help
  14. track — a path
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. prune — to trim
  19. saw — the tool
  20. prune — to trim
  21. saw — the tool
  22. spell — letters
  23. bass — the fish
  24. spell — magic

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