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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. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. object — to protest
  4. game — a match
  5. bore — to drill
  6. track — to keep track
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. track — a song
  9. object — a thing
  10. capital — a city
  11. capital — money
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. field — farmland
  14. field — a subject
  15. bore — to tire
  16. tube — a container
  17. tube — the underground
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. object — an aim
  20. game — wild animals
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. track — a path
  24. field — for sport

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