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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 124 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 like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. land — a country
  4. foot — a measure
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. spell — magic
  7. spell — a short time
  8. toast — the most admired
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. tube — a container
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. kid — child
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. tube — the underground
  15. spell — letters
  16. toast — a drink to someone
  17. land — ground
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. ruler — a monarch
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. kid — to tease
  23. land — to come down
  24. racket — for tennis

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