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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. pop — to visit
  3. tube — the underground
  4. capital — money
  5. toast — the most admired
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. tube — a container
  8. track — to keep track
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. track — a path
  11. toast — a drink to someone
  12. pitch — completely
  13. toast — bread
  14. track — a song
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. pop — soda
  18. branch — a division
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. prune — to trim
  21. pop — music
  22. prune — to trim
  23. capital — a city
  24. pitch — a sports field

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