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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: rule · tube · race · snap · nail · lie · squash · scale

  1. The ________________ went through the wall.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. tube — a container
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. rule — government
  5. squash — the sport
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. lie — to recline
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. race — a contest
  10. tube — the underground
  11. squash — to crush
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. race — humankind
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. snap — to click
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. race — the arms race
  21. scale — size or range
  22. scale — in music
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. rule — a law

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