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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. When will it ________________ you to start?
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. kick — in football
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. spring — of water
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. spring — the season
  9. pound — a weight
  10. suit — to fit
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. tube — the underground
  14. suit — in cards
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. tube — a container
  17. suit — clothes
  18. shower — rain
  19. shower — to wash
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. spring — a coil
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. coach — a trainer

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