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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 116 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: face · bore · race · clip · track · net · pit · fork

  1. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. race — humankind
  4. track — a path
  5. face — to confront
  6. net — for catching
  7. pit — in a race
  8. race — the arms race
  9. bore — to tire
  10. fork — in a road
  11. track — to keep track
  12. net — in sport
  13. track — a song
  14. face — to point toward
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. net — after costs
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. clip — to cut
  19. bore — to drill
  20. face — part of the head
  21. race — a contest
  22. clip — a video
  23. clip — for paper
  24. fork — a garden tool

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