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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. chip — for betting
  4. fall — to drop
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. field — for sport
  7. chip — to eat
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. fall — to drop
  11. wake — a trail
  12. track — a path
  13. tube — the underground
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. field — a subject
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. cell — in biology
  18. fall — the season
  19. tube — a container
  20. field — farmland
  21. track — a song
  22. track — to keep track
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. cell — a phone

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