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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: fine · perch · rest · kid · foot · tube · race · tear

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. tube — the underground
  3. rest — what's left
  4. fine — all right
  5. race — humankind
  6. tear — from crying
  7. kid — to tease
  8. tear — from crying
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. perch — the fish
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. race — a contest
  13. kid — child
  14. fine — high quality
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. tube — a container
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. foot — a measure
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. rest — what's left
  23. rest — a break
  24. race — the arms race

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