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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 120 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. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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. tube — in a tire
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. cell — a phone
  6. lie — to recline
  7. race — humankind
  8. cell — in biology
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. court — of a king
  12. stem — to come from
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. race — the arms race
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. stock — goods
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. court — for sport
  20. stock — shares
  21. court — of law
  22. race — a contest
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. fan — to cool the air

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