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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: mark · wake · bark · key · cold · safe · tube · race

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. key — the most important part
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. mark — a grade
  6. cold — not warm
  7. tube — the underground
  8. cold — an illness
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. key — for a lock
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. race — humankind
  14. key — in music
  15. race — a contest
  16. bark — to shout
  17. tube — a container
  18. safe — a strongbox
  19. wake — a trail
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. mark — a trace
  24. race — the arms race

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