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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 120 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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. object — a thing
  4. object — an aim
  5. ground — crushed
  6. track — to keep track
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. fine — all right
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. fine — high quality
  11. game — a match
  12. wind — moving air
  13. track — a path
  14. cell — a phone
  15. game — wild animals
  16. wind — moving air
  17. track — a song
  18. tube — the underground
  19. object — to protest
  20. ground — a position
  21. ground — the earth
  22. cell — in biology
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. tube — a container

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