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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. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. file — a tool
  3. file — a line of people
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. last — to go on
  6. firm — a company
  7. rash — a series
  8. firm — steady
  9. tube — the underground
  10. content — happy
  11. last — final
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. clip — for paper
  14. rash — hasty
  15. file — a document
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. content — the amount
  18. clip — to cut
  19. last — finally
  20. firm — decided
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. clip — a video
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. content — videos and posts

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