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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 124 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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: race · kick · tube · key · stem · tear

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. tear — from crying
  3. kick — in football
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. race — the arms race
  6. tube — the underground
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. tube — a container
  9. stem — to come from
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. tear — to rip
  14. tear — from crying
  15. key — for a lock
  16. race — humankind
  17. key — in music
  18. key — the most important part

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