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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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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: cell · track · race · chest · lean · rock · firm · wake

  1. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. track — to keep track
  3. firm — steady
  4. lean — thin
  5. rock — music
  6. firm — decided
  7. cell — a phone
  8. race — the arms race
  9. lean — to bend
  10. rock — a stone
  11. chest — of your body
  12. chest — a box
  13. track — a song
  14. cell — in biology
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. race — humankind
  17. firm — a company
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. chest — of your body
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. race — a contest
  22. wake — a trail
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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