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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 bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. jam — in traffic
  3. mate — a partner
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. pit — a hole
  6. game — wild animals
  7. land — ground
  8. mate — a friend
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. land — a country
  11. game — a match
  12. land — to come down
  13. press — to push
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. mate — to breed
  16. press — newspapers
  17. pit — in a race
  18. jam — to spread on bread
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. jam — a tight spot
  22. tube — the underground
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. press — a publisher

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