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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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. pass — a permit
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. spring — the season
  5. wind — moving air
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. spring — a coil
  8. pass — to spend time
  9. date — the fruit
  10. wind — moving air
  11. tube — a container
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. tube — the underground
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. cap — a hat
  19. spring — of water
  20. can — a tin
  21. cap — of ice
  22. cap — a lid
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. can — a tin

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