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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 want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. When will it ________________ you to start?
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. suit — to fit
  3. pit — a hole
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. tube — the underground
  6. squash — to crush
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. net — after costs
  9. net — in sport
  10. wind — moving air
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. suit — in cards
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. wind — moving air
  15. suit — clothes
  16. squash — the sport
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. net — for catching
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. cell — in biology
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. cell — a phone
  23. pit — in a race
  24. snap — to click

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