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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 120 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: track · last · race · chest · content · spring · fine · stick

  1. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. spring — a coil
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. race — the arms race
  5. spring — the season
  6. fine — all right
  7. chest — of your body
  8. fine — high quality
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. last — finally
  11. last — final
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. content — the amount
  14. last — to go on
  15. chest — a box
  16. race — humankind
  17. track — a song
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. spring — of water
  20. track — to keep track
  21. race — a contest
  22. chest — of your body
  23. content — happy
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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