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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. file — a tool
  3. can — to be able to
  4. staff — employees
  5. file — a line of people
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. clip — to cut
  8. tube — the underground
  9. staff — employees
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. chest — of your body
  13. clip — for paper
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. can — a tin
  16. chest — of your body
  17. chest — a box
  18. rock — a stone
  19. staff — a stick
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. clip — a video
  22. rock — music
  23. file — a document
  24. can — a tin

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