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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 need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. pit — a hole
  3. track — a song
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. stock — goods
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. pit — in a race
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. tube — the underground
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. tube — a container
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. track — a path
  19. wound — an injury
  20. track — to keep track
  21. kick — in football
  22. wound — an injury
  23. stock — shares
  24. perch — the fish

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