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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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468
Word bank
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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'll be taking the ________________.
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. tear — from crying
  4. craft — boats
  5. net — in sport
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. net — for catching
  11. net — after costs
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. kid — child
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. craft — a skill
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. tube — a container
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. kid — to tease
  23. tear — to rip
  24. tear — from crying

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