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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 120 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 · tube · calf · scale · squash · can · clip · prune

  1. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. prune — to trim
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. can — a tin
  6. race — the arms race
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. prune — to trim
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. race — a contest
  11. can — a tin
  12. tube — the underground
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. clip — to cut
  15. can — to be able to
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. scale — in music
  18. tube — a container
  19. race — humankind
  20. squash — the sport
  21. squash — to crush
  22. scale — size or range
  23. clip — for paper
  24. squash — the vegetable

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