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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 · mouse · field · nail · row · tube · date · arm

  1. The ________________ went through the wall.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. Should I buy a wireless ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. race — the arms race
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. race — a contest
  8. row — to paddle
  9. race — humankind
  10. tube — a container
  11. date — the fruit
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. field — for sport
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. row — a line
  19. field — farmland
  20. field — a subject
  21. tube — the underground
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. mouse — for a computer

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