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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: net · hide · clip · coach · lie · race · track · field

  1. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. track — to keep track
  3. track — a path
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. clip — to cut
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. field — farmland
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. clip — for paper
  10. race — the arms race
  11. track — a song
  12. clip — a video
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. race — a contest
  16. lie — to recline
  17. race — humankind
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. field — a subject
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. net — after costs
  22. net — for catching
  23. net — in sport
  24. field — for sport

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