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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: cabinet · safe · mine · land · race · nail · coach · tube

  1. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — a strongbox
  2. land — ground
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. mine — for digging
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. race — the arms race
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. race — humankind
  14. land — to come down
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. tube — the underground
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. tube — a container
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. race — a contest
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. land — a country

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