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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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. tube — the underground
  4. cold — an illness
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. shower — rain
  8. race — humankind
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. race — the arms race
  11. tube — a container
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. deal — to handle
  14. race — a contest
  15. cold — not warm
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. shower — to wash
  18. field — farmland
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. pound — a weight
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. wave — with your hand
  24. field — a subject

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