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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. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. My mare is ________________ in color.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. tube — a container
  3. wind — moving air
  4. wind — moving air
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. chest — a box
  8. lie — to recline
  9. clip — to cut
  10. tube — the underground
  11. chest — of your body
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. stand — to bear
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. clip — for paper
  17. craft — a skill
  18. clip — a video
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. craft — boats
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. bay — a horse colour

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