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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 want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  11. When will it ________________ you to start?
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. present — there
  5. rush — hurry
  6. mug — to rob
  7. present — a gift
  8. mug — a face
  9. hand — in cards
  10. suit — in cards
  11. suit — to fit
  12. present — the time now
  13. hand — help
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. tube — the underground
  16. mug — a cup
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. suit — clothes
  20. clip — a video
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. clip — to cut
  23. clip — for paper
  24. fork — in a road

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