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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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. cue — a signal
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. cue — a hint
  7. bank — for money
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. land — a country
  10. tube — a container
  11. cap — a hat
  12. tear — from crying
  13. cap — of ice
  14. tear — to rip
  15. tear — from crying
  16. cue — for pool
  17. land — to come down
  18. tube — the underground
  19. bank — for money
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. bank — of a river
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. land — ground

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