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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: row · cold · hand · bass · bark · wake · race · track

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. track — to keep track
  3. race — the arms race
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. track — a path
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. row — to paddle
  9. bass — the fish
  10. hand — help
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. race — humankind
  13. cold — not warm
  14. race — a contest
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. row — a line
  17. bark — to shout
  18. track — a song
  19. cold — an illness
  20. bass — low music
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. wake — a trail
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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