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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'll be taking the ________________.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. fine — all right
  3. march — the month
  4. cap — of ice
  5. march — music
  6. file — a tool
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. dip — to sink
  11. saw — the tool
  12. file — a document
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. march — the month
  16. file — a line of people
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. saw — the tool
  19. cap — a hat
  20. fine — high quality
  21. tube — a container
  22. cap — a lid
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. tube — in a tire

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