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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 want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. drill — the tool
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. drill — army training
  12. tube — the underground
  13. fork — in a road
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. drill — a practice
  18. pitch — completely

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