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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. He has no idea where the ________________ is.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. charge — electricity
  3. hand — help
  4. charge — a price
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. tube — a container
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. stock — goods
  9. charge — in control
  10. stock — shares
  11. race — humankind
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. race — a contest
  14. hand — in cards
  15. race — the arms race
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. tube — the underground
  18. safe — a strongbox

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