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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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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: race · rash · tube · clip · snap · temple · mug · cabinet

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. race — a contest
  4. snap — to click
  5. race — humankind
  6. tube — a container
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. mug — a cup
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. race — the arms race
  13. temple — side of the head
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. rash — a series
  18. clip — for paper
  19. mug — to rob
  20. clip — a video
  21. rash — hasty
  22. mug — a face
  23. tube — the underground
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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