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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 need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  23. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  24. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. ball — a great time
  4. prune — to trim
  5. hand — help
  6. jam — in traffic
  7. tube — a container
  8. prune — to trim
  9. hand — in cards
  10. mug — a cup
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. tube — the underground
  14. tear — to rip
  15. race — a contest
  16. race — the arms race
  17. tear — from crying
  18. tear — from crying
  19. mug — to rob
  20. ball — a dance
  21. race — humankind
  22. jam — a tight spot
  23. jam — to spread on bread
  24. mug — a face

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