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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: kid · rest · scale · land · race · tube · deal · plane

  1. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. rest — what's left
  4. scale — in music
  5. kid — child
  6. race — humankind
  7. plane — a tool
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. land — ground
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. scale — size or range
  12. tube — the underground
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. land — a country
  15. rest — what's left
  16. deal — to handle
  17. land — to come down
  18. race — a contest
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. rest — a break
  22. kid — to tease
  23. race — the arms race
  24. plane — in geometry

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