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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: stem · plane · last · race · squash · rule · kick · tube

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. race — the arms race
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. rule — government
  6. last — final
  7. last — to go on
  8. plane — a tool
  9. rule — a law
  10. last — finally
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. squash — the sport
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. squash — to crush
  17. stem — to come from
  18. tube — the underground
  19. tube — a container
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. race — humankind
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. kick — in football

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