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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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'll be taking the ________________.
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. date — the fruit
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. chest — of your body
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. tube — a container
  12. kid — child
  13. chest — of your body
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. kid — to tease
  17. pitch — completely
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. press — newspapers
  20. bay — a part of the sea
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. press — to push
  23. chest — a box
  24. press — a publisher

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