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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 need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. stock — goods
  3. staff — employees
  4. bark — to shout
  5. tube — the underground
  6. stock — shares
  7. last — to go on
  8. rule — a law
  9. last — final
  10. staff — employees
  11. tube — a container
  12. net — in sport
  13. net — after costs
  14. bound — obliged
  15. net — for catching
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. bound — tied together
  19. rule — government
  20. bound — certain
  21. last — finally
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. staff — a stick
  24. stock — a soup base

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