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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 want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. game — wild animals
  3. game — a match
  4. race — humankind
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. race — the arms race
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. tube — the underground
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. race — a contest
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. bore — to drill
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. chair — a leader
  21. bore — to tire
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. pitch — completely

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