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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 need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. court — of law
  5. court — for sport
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. staff — employees
  8. staff — employees
  9. rash — a series
  10. rush — hurry
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. tube — a container
  14. staff — a stick
  15. pitch — completely
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. rash — hasty
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. tube — the underground
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. season — in sport
  23. season — of the year
  24. court — of a king

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