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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: row · key · roll · spring · track · bore · rush · cap

  1. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. key — the most important part
  3. cap — a hat
  4. spring — a coil
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. row — a line
  7. key — for a lock
  8. rush — hurry
  9. roll — a cake
  10. row — to paddle
  11. key — in music
  12. cap — a lid
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. track — a path
  16. spring — the season
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. cap — of ice
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. spring — of water
  21. track — a song
  22. bore — to tire
  23. roll — a list
  24. bore — to drill

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