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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. tube — a container
  4. race — a contest
  5. tear — from crying
  6. wound — an injury
  7. tear — from crying
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. row — to paddle
  11. race — humankind
  12. track — a path
  13. track — to keep track
  14. tear — to rip
  15. root — the cause
  16. root — of a word
  17. race — the arms race
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. row — a line
  20. tube — the underground
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. root — of a plant
  23. track — a song
  24. wake — a trail

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