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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 want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. tube — the underground
  3. chair — a leader
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. spell — magic
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. spell — letters
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. last — to go on
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. last — finally
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. last — final
  21. dip — to sink
  22. fork — in a road
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. spell — a short time

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