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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  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. cell — in a prison
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. net — after costs
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. tube — a container
  7. court — of law
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. court — of a king
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. branch — a division
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. net — in sport
  16. court — for sport
  17. tube — the underground
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. fork — in a road
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. cell — in biology
  22. stand — to bear
  23. net — for catching
  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