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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 met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. mine — for digging
  3. mate — to breed
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. row — a line
  7. ground — a position
  8. mate — a partner
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. dip — to sink
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. net — in sport
  13. ground — crushed
  14. kick — in football
  15. mate — a friend
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. net — after costs
  18. ground — the earth
  19. tube — the underground
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. row — to paddle
  23. tube — a container
  24. net — for catching

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