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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: track · trunk · race · mark · bound · wind · charge · last

  1. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. The tickets are free of ________________.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. charge — in control
  3. last — final
  4. last — finally
  5. race — a contest
  6. bound — certain
  7. charge — electricity
  8. race — the arms race
  9. track — a song
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. wind — moving air
  13. bound — tied together
  14. race — humankind
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. wind — moving air
  17. last — to go on
  18. mark — a grade
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. bound — obliged
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. charge — a price
  23. mark — a trace
  24. track — a path

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