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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. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. fall — to drop
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. chest — of your body
  5. capital — a city
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. chest — a box
  8. fall — to drop
  9. fall — the season
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. swing — in golf
  14. kick — in football
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. swing — music
  17. tube — a container
  18. swing — to play on
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. tube — the underground
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. chest — of your body
  24. capital — money

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