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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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. cue — a hint
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. land — to come down
  5. pit — a hole
  6. cue — for pool
  7. cue — a signal
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. tube — a container
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. land — a country
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. tube — the underground
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. land — ground
  24. pit — in a race

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