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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. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. When will it ________________ you to start?
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — in cards
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. suit — to fit
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. file — a tool
  7. tube — the underground
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. file — a line of people
  11. suit — clothes
  12. stock — shares
  13. stock — goods
  14. tube — a container
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. file — a document
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. wake — a trail
  24. hide — animal skin

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