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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 116 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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. race — humankind
  3. vault — a safe
  4. rash — a series
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. tube — a container
  9. rash — hasty
  10. row — to paddle
  11. field — farmland
  12. race — a contest
  13. field — for sport
  14. hand — in cards
  15. field — a subject
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. hand — help
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. race — the arms race
  21. row — a line
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. tube — the underground
  24. trunk — of a tree

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