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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 like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. game — a match
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. dip — to sink
  8. tube — the underground
  9. game — wild animals
  10. bear — the animal
  11. bound — tied together
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. bound — certain
  14. last — to go on
  15. bear — the animal
  16. bound — obliged
  17. last — finally
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. bat — the animal
  20. tube — a container
  21. last — final
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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