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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 need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. rash — hasty
  3. saw — the tool
  4. content — happy
  5. content — the amount
  6. track — a song
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. tube — a container
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. net — for catching
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. net — in sport
  14. track — to keep track
  15. tube — the underground
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. saw — the tool
  18. net — after costs
  19. kid — to tease
  20. kid — child
  21. track — a path
  22. rash — a series
  23. rock — a stone
  24. rock — music

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