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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'll be taking the ________________.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. We're on a ________________ here.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. roll — a list
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. roll — on a roll
  6. roll — a cake
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. squash — to crush
  9. squash — the sport
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. swing — to play on
  13. bear — the animal
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. swing — music
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. swing — in golf
  20. bear — the animal
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. tube — a container
  23. bat — the animal
  24. squash — the vegetable

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