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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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. tube — a container
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. race — the arms race
  7. bat — the animal
  8. race — humankind
  9. bore — to drill
  10. tear — to rip
  11. tear — from crying
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. tear — from crying
  14. tube — the underground
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. stem — to come from
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. bore — to tire
  24. race — a contest

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