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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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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: fall · track · ruler · pound · race · bore · face · tube

  1. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. tube — the underground
  4. face — to confront
  5. bore — to tire
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. fall — the season
  8. track — a song
  9. face — part of the head
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. fall — to drop
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. race — humankind
  14. race — the arms race
  15. face — to point toward
  16. ruler — a monarch
  17. fall — to drop
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. bore — to drill
  21. track — a path
  22. pound — a weight
  23. race — a contest
  24. tube — a container

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