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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 need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. chest — a box
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. tube — the underground
  7. chip — for betting
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. capital — money
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. deal — to handle
  12. file — a line of people
  13. bore — to tire
  14. tube — a container
  15. file — a tool
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. chip — to eat
  18. perch — the fish
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. chest — of your body
  21. chest — of your body
  22. bore — to drill
  23. capital — a city
  24. file — a document

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