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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. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — for pool
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. tube — the underground
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. land — to come down
  6. tube — a container
  7. prune — to trim
  8. cue — a hint
  9. object — an aim
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. bore — to tire
  13. object — to protest
  14. hand — in cards
  15. hand — help
  16. land — a country
  17. object — a thing
  18. land — ground
  19. prune — to trim
  20. bore — to drill
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. scale — in music
  23. cue — a signal
  24. scale — size or range

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