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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. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. tube — the underground
  3. rash — hasty
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. tear — to rip
  8. fine — all right
  9. tear — from crying
  10. band — a ring
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. snap — to click
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. root — the cause
  15. root — of a word
  16. rash — a series
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. root — of a plant
  19. tear — from crying
  20. tube — a container
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. fine — high quality
  23. band — a music group
  24. band — a rubber band

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