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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 116 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. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. board — to get on
  3. field — for sport
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. tube — the underground
  6. net — for catching
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. game — a match
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. rush — hurry
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. board — a committee
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. net — after costs
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. net — in sport
  18. field — farmland
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. field — a subject
  23. game — wild animals
  24. hide — to keep secret

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