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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. object — to protest
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. tube — the underground
  6. rush — hurry
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. band — a music group
  9. object — an aim
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. press — a publisher
  12. kid — child
  13. cell — a phone
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. object — a thing
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. wake — a trail
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. press — to push
  20. press — newspapers
  21. tube — a container
  22. band — a ring
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. cell — in biology

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