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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 120 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. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  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 — in a tire
  2. tube — the underground
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. press — newspapers
  5. net — in sport
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. firm — decided
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. press — to push
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. net — after costs
  14. tube — a container
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. cue — for pool
  17. cold — not warm
  18. firm — steady
  19. cue — a hint
  20. cold — an illness
  21. net — for catching
  22. cue — a signal
  23. firm — a company
  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