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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. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. My mare is ________________ in color.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — in a road
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. lean — to bend
  6. mate — to breed
  7. content — happy
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. tube — the underground
  10. mate — a friend
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. shower — to wash
  13. file — a document
  14. mate — a partner
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. content — the amount
  17. lean — thin
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. shower — rain
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. file — a tool
  22. file — a line of people
  23. bay — a horse colour
  24. tube — a container

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