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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 want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. tear — from crying
  5. cap — a lid
  6. jam — a tight spot
  7. pit — a hole
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. file — a document
  10. cap — a hat
  11. drill — the tool
  12. jam — to spread on bread
  13. file — a tool
  14. tear — from crying
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. drill — a practice
  17. drill — army training
  18. jam — in traffic
  19. file — a line of people
  20. tube — the underground
  21. date — the fruit
  22. cap — of ice
  23. pit — in a race
  24. tear — to rip

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