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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 want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. swing — in golf
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. chest — a box
  9. chest — of your body
  10. swing — to play on
  11. hand — in cards
  12. mark — a trace
  13. hand — help
  14. mark — a grade
  15. chest — of your body
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. swing — music
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. tube — the underground
  22. bear — the animal
  23. deal — to handle
  24. bear — the animal

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