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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: wax · rush · club · key · fall · bass · race · track

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  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. rush — to hurry
  3. fall — to drop
  4. bass — the fish
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. track — to keep track
  7. club — for dancing
  8. rush — hurry
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. fall — to drop
  11. race — the arms race
  12. key — in music
  13. wax — to grow
  14. key — the most important part
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. fall — the season
  17. track — a song
  18. club — for golf
  19. club — a group
  20. key — for a lock
  21. bass — low music
  22. race — humankind
  23. bass — the instrument
  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