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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: tube · bowl · charge · race · stem · toast · wound · hand

  1. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. charge — electricity
  3. toast — the most admired
  4. race — the arms race
  5. race — a contest
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. hand — in cards
  8. toast — bread
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. tube — the underground
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. toast — a drink to someone
  15. hand — help
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. stem — to come from
  18. charge — in control
  19. wound — an injury
  20. race — humankind
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. wound — an injury
  23. charge — a price
  24. bowl — a football final

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