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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 120 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 need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. ball — a dance
  3. chest — of your body
  4. charge — a price
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. chest — a box
  7. drill — a practice
  8. ball — a great time
  9. wind — moving air
  10. chest — of your body
  11. wind — moving air
  12. prune — to trim
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. drill — army training
  16. tube — the underground
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. prune — to trim
  19. tube — a container
  20. charge — electricity
  21. drill — the tool
  22. charge — in control
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. racket — for tennis

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