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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 116 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: kid · race · mouse · mark · tube · fork · field · ruler

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. kid — to tease
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. tube — a container
  8. mark — a trace
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. fork — in a road
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. mark — a grade
  15. race — the arms race
  16. field — a subject
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. field — for sport
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. race — a contest
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. kid — child
  23. race — humankind
  24. tube — the underground

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