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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: race · mate · track · ball · content · stock · bass · rock

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. ball — a dance
  3. mate — to breed
  4. bass — the fish
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. bass — low music
  8. ball — a great time
  9. mate — a friend
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. stock — shares
  12. race — humankind
  13. content — happy
  14. track — to keep track
  15. content — the amount
  16. rock — music
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. race — the arms race
  19. mate — a partner
  20. rock — a stone
  21. stock — goods
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. track — a song
  24. track — a path

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