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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: kid · lean · race · clip · bank · tube · squash · scale

  1. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. tube — the underground
  4. race — the arms race
  5. scale — size or range
  6. scale — in music
  7. bank — for money
  8. bank — of a river
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. squash — to crush
  12. clip — a video
  13. clip — for paper
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. lean — to bend
  16. race — humankind
  17. race — a contest
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. clip — to cut
  20. kid — child
  21. bank — for money
  22. squash — the sport
  23. lean — thin
  24. kid — to tease

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