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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 got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. fall — the season
  3. tube — a container
  4. tube — the underground
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. can — to be able to
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. hand — help
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. fall — to drop
  14. clip — a video
  15. fall — to drop
  16. clip — for paper
  17. stem — to come from
  18. can — a tin
  19. board — to get on
  20. clip — to cut
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. can — a tin
  23. bark — to shout
  24. board — a committee

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