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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 120 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 need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. present — a gift
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. mate — a partner
  6. hand — in cards
  7. present — there
  8. hand — help
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. race — a contest
  11. tear — from crying
  12. race — the arms race
  13. tear — to rip
  14. mate — a friend
  15. race — humankind
  16. tear — from crying
  17. present — the time now
  18. dip — to sink
  19. tube — the underground
  20. mate — to breed
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. tube — a container
  24. hand — part of the body

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