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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. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. ball — a great time
  3. tube — a container
  4. scale — size or range
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. wound — an injury
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. field — a subject
  11. scale — in music
  12. ball — a dance
  13. spring — of water
  14. field — for sport
  15. field — farmland
  16. march — music
  17. tube — the underground
  18. march — the month
  19. wound — an injury
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. spring — a coil
  22. spring — the season
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. march — the month

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