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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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. tube — the underground
  3. club — a group
  4. spring — the season
  5. jam — to spread on bread
  6. clip — for paper
  7. tube — a container
  8. mate — a friend
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. mate — a partner
  11. clip — to cut
  12. jam — in traffic
  13. spring — a coil
  14. jam — a tight spot
  15. clip — a video
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. spring — of water
  18. club — for golf
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. mate — to breed
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. club — for dancing

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