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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'll be taking the ________________.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. bark — to shout
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. scale — size or range
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. tube — a container
  9. spring — of water
  10. chip — for betting
  11. spell — a short time
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. pitch — completely
  15. chip — to eat
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. spring — a coil
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. scale — in music
  21. spell — magic
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. spell — letters
  24. spring — the season

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