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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: board · nail · tube · straw · racket · bass · race · cell

  1. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. cell — in biology
  5. race — humankind
  6. board — a committee
  7. tube — the underground
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. board — to get on
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. bass — the fish
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. bass — low music
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. cell — a phone
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. race — the arms race
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. tube — a container
  24. race — a contest

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