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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. bat — the animal
  3. tube — a container
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. tube — the underground
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. mark — a grade
  8. press — to push
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. march — music
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. track — a path
  15. press — newspapers
  16. track — to keep track
  17. mark — a trace
  18. press — a publisher
  19. march — the month
  20. track — a song
  21. march — the month
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. saw — the tool

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