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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: wake · trunk · season · pound · track · key · wax · race

  1. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. wax — to grow
  3. race — the arms race
  4. wake — a trail
  5. season — of the year
  6. track — a song
  7. race — a contest
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. pound — a weight
  10. key — for a lock
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. key — the most important part
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. race — humankind
  20. key — in music
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. track — a path
  23. season — in sport
  24. season — to add flavour

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