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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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Word bank
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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: mug · race · face · land · fan · straw · prune · tube

  1. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. land — a country
  3. mug — a cup
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. prune — to trim
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. land — ground
  8. face — to confront
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. mug — to rob
  11. tube — a container
  12. land — to come down
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. face — part of the head
  15. race — the arms race
  16. mug — a face
  17. race — a contest
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. tube — the underground
  22. prune — to trim
  23. race — humankind
  24. face — to point toward

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