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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: mine · land · clip · coach · tube · stand · trunk · race

  1. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. race — the arms race
  4. clip — for paper
  5. clip — a video
  6. land — to come down
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. clip — to cut
  9. race — humankind
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. land — ground
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. stand — to bear
  15. mine — for digging
  16. race — a contest
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. tube — the underground
  19. land — a country
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. mine — an explosive

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