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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. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. tube — a container
  4. row — a line
  5. field — farmland
  6. can — a tin
  7. can — to be able to
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. row — to paddle
  12. net — after costs
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. net — for catching
  15. race — a contest
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. can — a tin
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. field — for sport
  20. net — in sport
  21. race — the arms race
  22. field — a subject
  23. sharp — clever
  24. race — humankind

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