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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: last · clip · race · trunk · lie · tube · face · mug

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. face — part of the head
  5. race — a contest
  6. face — to confront
  7. clip — a video
  8. clip — to cut
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. clip — for paper
  11. tube — a container
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. mug — to rob
  15. mug — a face
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. last — to go on
  18. lie — to recline
  19. face — to point toward
  20. last — final
  21. tube — the underground
  22. race — humankind
  23. race — the arms race
  24. mug — a cup

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