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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 need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. wound — an injury
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. tube — the underground
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. bear — the animal
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. bear — the animal
  11. chip — for betting
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. chip — to eat
  14. wound — an injury
  15. content — the amount
  16. content — happy
  17. tube — a container
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. kick — in football
  24. pitch — completely

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