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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. pit — a hole
  3. file — a document
  4. tear — from crying
  5. swing — music
  6. tear — to rip
  7. tube — the underground
  8. tube — a container
  9. cell — in biology
  10. game — wild animals
  11. swing — in golf
  12. game — a match
  13. staff — a stick
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. pit — in a race
  16. file — a line of people
  17. tear — from crying
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. swing — to play on
  20. file — a tool
  21. staff — employees
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. cell — a phone
  24. staff — employees

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