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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. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. cue — a hint
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. clip — for paper
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. clip — to cut
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. cell — in biology
  12. field — a subject
  13. cell — a phone
  14. clip — a video
  15. wake — a trail
  16. plane — a tool
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. field — for sport
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. tube — the underground
  21. cue — for pool
  22. cue — a signal
  23. field — farmland
  24. hide — animal skin

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