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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · sharp · hide · current · field · bear · rest

  1. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. rest — what's left
  3. bear — the animal
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. current — of water
  7. field — farmland
  8. race — the arms race
  9. race — a contest
  10. current — electric
  11. rest — a break
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. race — humankind
  15. sharp — clever
  16. rest — what's left
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. tube — the underground
  19. field — for sport
  20. current — happening now
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. field — a subject
  24. bear — the animal

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