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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: clip · wake · cold · craft · fan · land · track · key

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. cold — an illness
  3. land — a country
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. key — in music
  6. clip — to cut
  7. key — for a lock
  8. track — a song
  9. land — ground
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. track — to keep track
  12. land — to come down
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. key — the most important part
  15. clip — for paper
  16. track — a path
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. craft — a skill
  19. clip — a video
  20. wake — a trail
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. craft — boats
  24. craft — a handicraft

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