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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 want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. spell — a short time
  4. bear — the animal
  5. season — of the year
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. spell — magic
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. bear — the animal
  10. tube — the underground
  11. chip — for betting
  12. season — in sport
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. spell — letters
  15. chip — to eat
  16. ball — a great time
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. cold — not warm
  19. squash — to crush
  20. cold — an illness
  21. squash — the sport
  22. ball — a dance
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. chip — in a computer

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