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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 need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. can — to be able to
  3. kid — to tease
  4. face — to point toward
  5. spring — of water
  6. root — the cause
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. face — to confront
  9. tear — from crying
  10. tear — to rip
  11. spring — the season
  12. root — of a plant
  13. root — of a word
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. tube — a container
  17. tube — the underground
  18. can — a tin
  19. spring — a coil
  20. face — part of the head
  21. can — a tin
  22. kid — child
  23. tear — from crying
  24. nail — on a finger

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