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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: tube · wind · race · kid · march · branch · cabinet · pass

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. march — the month
  3. pass — a permit
  4. march — music
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. march — the month
  7. race — the arms race
  8. pass — to spend time
  9. race — humankind
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. kid — child
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. kid — to tease
  17. branch — a division
  18. tube — the underground
  19. wind — moving air
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. wind — moving air
  22. tube — a container
  23. race — a contest
  24. cabinet — ministers

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