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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: wound · capital · season · track · race · leaves · trunk · rule

  1. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. wound — an injury
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. track — a song
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. rule — government
  7. race — humankind
  8. race — a contest
  9. capital — money
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. rule — a law
  13. wound — an injury
  14. season — in sport
  15. capital — a city
  16. track — a path
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. track — to keep track
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. race — the arms race

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