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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. tube — the underground
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. mark — a trace
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. present — there
  10. row — to paddle
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. mark — a grade
  13. dip — to sink
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. tube — a container
  17. craft — boats
  18. shower — rain
  19. shower — to wash
  20. present — the time now
  21. craft — a skill
  22. row — a line
  23. present — a gift
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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