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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. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  20. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. kid — to tease
  4. kid — child
  5. spring — the season
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. ball — a great time
  10. ball — a dance
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. net — after costs
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. spring — of water
  16. net — in sport
  17. spring — a coil
  18. tube — the underground
  19. toast — bread
  20. toast — a drink to someone
  21. tube — a container
  22. net — for catching
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. racket — a loud noise

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