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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: race · staff · bear · land · tube · bound · stock · bat

  1. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. bat — the animal
  3. race — a contest
  4. race — the arms race
  5. bound — tied together
  6. race — humankind
  7. land — a country
  8. staff — employees
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. land — to come down
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. bound — certain
  15. land — ground
  16. staff — employees
  17. bear — the animal
  18. staff — a stick
  19. bear — the animal
  20. stock — shares
  21. bound — obliged
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. tube — the underground
  24. stock — goods

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