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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 116 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'll be taking the ________________.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. branch — a division
  5. lean — to bend
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. wind — moving air
  9. lean — thin
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. charge — electricity
  13. tube — a container
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. wind — moving air
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. charge — a price
  24. charge — in control

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