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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 120 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: fall · race · degree · row · current · can · tube · last

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. degree — from a university
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. row — a line
  5. race — humankind
  6. current — electric
  7. row — to paddle
  8. fall — to drop
  9. last — finally
  10. race — the arms race
  11. last — final
  12. fall — to drop
  13. last — to go on
  14. degree — an amount
  15. tube — the underground
  16. can — a tin
  17. current — happening now
  18. can — to be able to
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. can — a tin
  21. current — of water
  22. fall — the season
  23. degree — temperature
  24. tube — a container

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