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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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. wind — moving air
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. chip — for betting
  5. band — a ring
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. mate — a friend
  8. tube — the underground
  9. ruler — a monarch
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. tube — a container
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. stock — goods
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. band — a music group
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. mate — to breed
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. chip — to eat
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. wind — moving air
  24. stock — shares

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