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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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. cell — in biology
  5. bore — to tire
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. cell — a phone
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. tube — a container
  15. wind — moving air
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. pound — a weight
  18. bore — to drill
  19. branch — a division
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. pitch — completely
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. wind — moving air
  24. branch — of a tree

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