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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: staff · temple · track · kick · stock · court · race · capital

  1. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. staff — a stick
  3. race — humankind
  4. court — for sport
  5. track — to keep track
  6. court — of a king
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. capital — money
  9. staff — employees
  10. staff — employees
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. temple — side of the head
  14. stock — goods
  15. race — the arms race
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. kick — in football
  18. capital — a city
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. court — of law
  21. stock — shares
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. track — a song
  24. race — a contest

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