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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: club · firm · tube · deal · tear · bass · march · race

  1. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. march — music
  3. bass — low music
  4. club — for dancing
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. club — for golf
  7. firm — steady
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. march — the month
  10. tear — from crying
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. bass — the fish
  13. firm — a company
  14. firm — decided
  15. club — a group
  16. race — humankind
  17. tear — to rip
  18. tube — the underground
  19. tube — a container
  20. tear — from crying
  21. march — the month
  22. race — a contest
  23. deal — to handle
  24. deal — a big deal

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