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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 116 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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. cell — in biology
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. wound — an injury
  6. land — a country
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. land — to come down
  9. cell — a phone
  10. march — the month
  11. tube — the underground
  12. pass — a permit
  13. march — the month
  14. wind — moving air
  15. fine — all right
  16. wound — an injury
  17. wind — moving air
  18. march — music
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. land — ground
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. fine — high quality

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