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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. tube — the underground
  3. bat — the animal
  4. tube — a container
  5. current — of water
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. bound — certain
  10. net — for catching
  11. season — of the year
  12. net — after costs
  13. current — happening now
  14. foot — a measure
  15. shower — to wash
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. shower — rain
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. bound — tied together
  20. season — in sport
  21. bound — obliged
  22. current — electric
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. net — in sport

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