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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'll be taking the ________________.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. spell — letters
  3. bound — obliged
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. bank — of a river
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. ground — a position
  8. spell — magic
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. bound — certain
  11. can — a tin
  12. spell — a short time
  13. tube — a container
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. bank — for money
  16. ground — crushed
  17. can — a tin
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. ground — the earth
  20. bound — tied together
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. can — to be able to
  23. dip — to sink
  24. bank — for money

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