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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. kid — to tease
  4. spring — a coil
  5. spring — the season
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. kid — child
  9. pit — a hole
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. spring — of water
  16. tube — the underground
  17. pit — in a race
  18. hide — to keep secret

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