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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 120 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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468
Word bank
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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. stand — to bear
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. chest — of your body
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. deal — to handle
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. clip — for paper
  11. clip — to cut
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. temple — side of the head
  14. cold — not warm
  15. clip — a video
  16. chest — a box
  17. tube — the underground
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. cold — an illness
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. tube — a container
  23. chest — of your body
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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