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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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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: game · track · key · drill · swing · tube · fall · season

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. track — to keep track
  3. key — the most important part
  4. season — of the year
  5. track — a song
  6. drill — a practice
  7. swing — in golf
  8. tube — the underground
  9. drill — the tool
  10. fall — the season
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. game — a match
  13. track — a path
  14. tube — a container
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. drill — army training
  17. game — wild animals
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. swing — music
  20. key — for a lock
  21. season — in sport
  22. key — in music
  23. swing — to play on
  24. fall — to drop

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