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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: land · race · key · board · fall · net · snap · track

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. board — a committee
  3. track — to keep track
  4. land — a country
  5. race — a contest
  6. track — a song
  7. race — humankind
  8. race — the arms race
  9. net — for catching
  10. track — a path
  11. land — to come down
  12. fall — to drop
  13. key — for a lock
  14. net — after costs
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. fall — the season
  17. fall — to drop
  18. net — in sport
  19. board — to get on
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. key — the most important part
  22. key — in music
  23. snap — to click
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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