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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: tube · hide · race · spell · stem · last · perch · chip

  1. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. race — the arms race
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. chip — for betting
  5. race — humankind
  6. stem — to come from
  7. last — final
  8. race — a contest
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. last — to go on
  11. tube — a container
  12. spell — magic
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. last — finally
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. chip — to eat
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. spell — letters
  20. perch — the fish
  21. spell — a short time
  22. tube — the underground
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. perch — for a bird

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