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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. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. tube — the underground
  3. degree — temperature
  4. race — humankind
  5. band — a ring
  6. degree — from a university
  7. race — a contest
  8. spring — of water
  9. band — a music group
  10. spring — a coil
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. bank — of a river
  13. degree — an amount
  14. game — a match
  15. charge — in control
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. game — wild animals
  18. bank — for money
  19. charge — a price
  20. race — the arms race
  21. spring — the season
  22. bank — for money
  23. charge — electricity
  24. band — a rubber band

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