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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: tube · tear · game · race · wind · staff

  1. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. race — humankind
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. tube — a container
  5. staff — a stick
  6. race — a contest
  7. tear — from crying
  8. staff — employees
  9. game — wild animals
  10. wind — moving air
  11. race — the arms race
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. tube — the underground
  14. game — a match
  15. tear — to rip
  16. tear — from crying
  17. wind — moving air
  18. tube — in a tire

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