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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 cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. tube — a container
  5. tube — the underground
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. game — a match
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. present — a gift
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. spell — a short time
  12. game — wild animals
  13. present — the time now
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. prune — to trim
  16. lie — to recline
  17. present — there
  18. pit — in a race
  19. spell — magic
  20. mine — for digging
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. pit — a hole
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. spell — letters

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