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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. kid — child
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. tube — the underground
  6. march — the month
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. ground — a position
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. safe — a strongbox
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. ground — the earth
  13. kid — to tease
  14. craft — a skill
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. bat — the animal
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. pitch — completely
  20. tube — a container
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. craft — boats
  23. march — music
  24. march — the month

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