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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 124 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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. tube — the underground
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. land — ground
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. fine — high quality
  8. band — a music group
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. fine — all right
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. band — a ring
  19. tube — a container
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. land — a country
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. date — the fruit

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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