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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 want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. tube — the underground
  5. staff — employees
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. drill — a practice
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. bat — the animal
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. fine — high quality
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. dip — to sink
  17. drill — army training
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. staff — a stick
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. drill — the tool
  23. staff — employees
  24. fine — all right

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