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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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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: tube · cabinet · pit · face · race · drill · stem · snap

  1. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. tube — a container
  4. face — to point toward
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. stem — to come from
  7. race — humankind
  8. pit — a hole
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. drill — the tool
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. race — the arms race
  13. drill — army training
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. drill — a practice
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. face — to confront
  18. tube — the underground
  19. race — a contest
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. face — part of the head
  22. snap — to click
  23. pit — in a race
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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