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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 116 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: last · content · chip · race · tube · perch · nail · tear

  1. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. last — to go on
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. tear — from crying
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. last — final
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. content — happy
  10. tube — a container
  11. last — finally
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. content — the amount
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. perch — the fish
  17. tube — the underground
  18. race — the arms race
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. tear — from crying
  21. race — a contest
  22. race — humankind
  23. tear — to rip
  24. chip — for betting

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