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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 120 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 felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. can — a tin
  3. key — in music
  4. band — a ring
  5. band — a music group
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. can — to be able to
  8. chest — a box
  9. tube — the underground
  10. can — a tin
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. court — for sport
  13. object — a thing
  14. chest — of your body
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. bat — the animal
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. object — an aim
  19. key — for a lock
  20. court — of a king
  21. object — to protest
  22. tube — a container
  23. key — the most important part
  24. court — of law

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