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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 124 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. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. drill — army training
  4. march — the month
  5. drill — a practice
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. tube — the underground
  8. march — music
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. mate — a friend
  12. perch — the fish
  13. squash — the sport
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. tube — a container
  17. march — the month
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. mate — a partner
  20. drill — the tool
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. mate — to breed
  24. squash — to crush

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