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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. row — a line
  3. face — to confront
  4. fine — all right
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. tube — the underground
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. face — part of the head
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. face — to point toward
  12. ground — crushed
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. tube — a container
  17. mark — a grade
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. mark — a trace
  20. ground — the earth
  21. bat — the animal
  22. ground — a position
  23. fine — high quality
  24. row — to paddle

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