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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 want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. fine — all right
  4. present — a gift
  5. land — ground
  6. present — there
  7. face — to confront
  8. face — to point toward
  9. land — a country
  10. chest — of your body
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. lean — thin
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. tube — the underground
  15. land — to come down
  16. chest — of your body
  17. bear — the animal
  18. fine — high quality
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. chest — a box
  21. lean — to bend
  22. face — part of the head
  23. present — the time now
  24. bear — the animal

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