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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. ground — the earth
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. ground — crushed
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. present — there
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. net — after costs
  10. ground — a position
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. net — in sport
  14. pop — music
  15. tube — the underground
  16. pop — soda
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. present — the time now
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. chair — a leader
  21. net — for catching
  22. tube — a container
  23. pop — to visit
  24. racket — for tennis

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