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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 need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. We're on a ________________ here.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. spell — letters
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. net — after costs
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. roll — on a roll
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. wound — an injury
  10. net — for catching
  11. wound — an injury
  12. tube — the underground
  13. tube — a container
  14. spell — magic
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. net — in sport
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. craft — a skill
  19. roll — a cake
  20. craft — boats
  21. roll — a list
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. spell — a short time

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