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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. drill — army training
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. capital — money
  6. bound — tied together
  7. root — of a plant
  8. drill — the tool
  9. pop — music
  10. rush — hurry
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. pit — in a race
  13. tube — a container
  14. pop — soda
  15. bound — certain
  16. capital — a city
  17. tube — the underground
  18. root — the cause
  19. drill — a practice
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. bound — obliged
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. root — of a word
  24. pop — to visit

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