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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'll be taking the ________________.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. march — music
  4. march — the month
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. jam — to spread on bread
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. hand — help
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. squash — the sport
  12. jam — a tight spot
  13. degree — temperature
  14. degree — from a university
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. tube — a container
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. squash — to crush
  22. degree — an amount
  23. hand — in cards
  24. march — the month

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