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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 need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. tube — a container
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. stem — to come from
  5. tube — the underground
  6. snap — to click
  7. object — to protest
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. saw — the tool
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. face — to confront
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. face — to point toward
  18. object — an aim
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. saw — the tool
  21. object — a thing
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. face — part of the head

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