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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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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 need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. club — for golf
  3. court — for sport
  4. club — for dancing
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. stock — shares
  10. stock — goods
  11. club — a group
  12. tube — the underground
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. date — the fruit
  16. tube — a container
  17. court — of a king
  18. court — of law

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