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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 · plane · rash · season · tube · mate · band · wake

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. season — of the year
  3. mate — to breed
  4. race — humankind
  5. season — in sport
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. mate — a partner
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. rash — a series
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. wake — a trail
  13. band — a music group
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. race — a contest
  19. plane — a tool
  20. rash — hasty
  21. mate — a friend
  22. tube — a container
  23. race — the arms race
  24. tube — the underground

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