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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 need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. mate — a friend
  3. race — the arms race
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. kid — to tease
  6. tube — the underground
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. rash — hasty
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. mate — to breed
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. mate — a partner
  14. game — a match
  15. tube — a container
  16. race — humankind
  17. race — a contest
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. fine — high quality
  20. kid — child
  21. stem — to come from
  22. rash — a series
  23. game — wild animals
  24. fine — all right

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