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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 need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. tube — a container
  4. snap — to click
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. tube — the underground
  9. fine — high quality
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. fine — all right
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. pop — to visit
  17. capital — money
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. capital — a city
  21. row — to paddle
  22. row — a line
  23. pop — soda
  24. pop — music

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