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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. He is an ace ________________.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. craft — boats
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. race — humankind
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. squash — to crush
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. rash — hasty
  10. squash — the sport
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. craft — a skill
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. mine — for digging
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. rash — a series
  18. race — a contest
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. tube — a container
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. race — the arms race
  24. tube — the underground

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