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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. jam — a tight spot
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. tube — a container
  8. lie — to recline
  9. bat — the animal
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. jam — in traffic
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. jam — to spread on bread
  14. cell — in biology
  15. scale — size or range
  16. squash — the sport
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. scale — in music
  19. wind — moving air
  20. cell — a phone
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. tube — the underground
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. squash — to crush

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