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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. race — a contest
  3. tube — the underground
  4. present — there
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. bound — obliged
  7. wax — to grow
  8. bound — tied together
  9. race — humankind
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. root — the cause
  13. present — a gift
  14. tube — a container
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. bound — certain
  17. root — of a plant
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. present — the time now
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. root — of a word
  23. wake — a trail
  24. race — the arms race

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