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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 want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. hand — help
  5. stock — shares
  6. tube — the underground
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. chair — a leader
  11. stock — goods
  12. perch — the fish
  13. charge — a price
  14. staff — employees
  15. charge — in control
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. staff — employees
  18. rule — a law
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. staff — a stick
  22. rule — government
  23. hand — in cards
  24. charge — electricity

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