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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. cue — a hint
  4. press — newspapers
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. cold — not warm
  8. chest — of your body
  9. cue — for pool
  10. hand — in cards
  11. press — to push
  12. tube — the underground
  13. bound — certain
  14. tube — a container
  15. chest — of your body
  16. cue — a signal
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. bound — tied together
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. cold — an illness
  21. hand — help
  22. press — a publisher
  23. bound — obliged
  24. chest — a box

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