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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. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. date — the fruit
  3. tube — the underground
  4. cap — a hat
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. shower — to wash
  9. content — the amount
  10. cap — a lid
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. march — the month
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. tube — a container
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. shower — rain
  18. march — music
  19. deal — to handle
  20. content — happy
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. cap — of ice
  23. march — the month
  24. deal — a big deal

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