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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. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. tube — a container
  3. race — a contest
  4. cell — in biology
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. race — humankind
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. spell — letters
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. track — a song
  12. stock — goods
  13. wind — moving air
  14. cell — a phone
  15. spell — a short time
  16. race — the arms race
  17. track — a path
  18. spell — magic
  19. stock — shares
  20. wind — moving air
  21. bulb — for light
  22. bulb — for light
  23. track — to keep track
  24. stock — a soup base

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