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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 120 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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. spring — of water
  6. mate — to breed
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. mate — a friend
  9. tube — a container
  10. bat — the animal
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. mate — a partner
  13. spring — the season
  14. rash — a series
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. foot — a measure
  18. spring — a coil
  19. tube — the underground
  20. season — in sport
  21. season — of the year
  22. foot — part of the body
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. foot — the bottom

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