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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: degree · key · race · bank · wake · track · mate · cap

  1. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. track — to keep track
  3. mate — to breed
  4. key — in music
  5. cap — a lid
  6. bank — for money
  7. degree — from a university
  8. key — the most important part
  9. track — a path
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. wake — a trail
  12. mate — a friend
  13. cap — of ice
  14. race — the arms race
  15. race — a contest
  16. cap — a hat
  17. degree — temperature
  18. degree — an amount
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. bank — for money
  21. race — humankind
  22. mate — a partner
  23. track — a song
  24. bank — of a river

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