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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: temple · clip · race · rule · field · tube · pass · leaves

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. When was this ________________ built?
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  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. tube — in a tire
  2. temple — side of the head
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. pass — to spend time
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. rule — a law
  7. field — farmland
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. tube — the underground
  11. race — humankind
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. field — for sport
  14. clip — to cut
  15. clip — for paper
  16. field — a subject
  17. clip — a video
  18. rule — government
  19. pass — a permit
  20. tube — a container
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. race — a contest
  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