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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. swing — in golf
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. tube — a container
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. swing — music
  9. cell — in biology
  10. last — final
  11. tube — the underground
  12. scale — in music
  13. last — finally
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. scale — size or range
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. swing — to play on
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. bear — the animal
  23. cell — a phone
  24. bear — the animal

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