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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 pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. tube — a container
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. tube — the underground
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. rash — hasty
  9. drill — the tool
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. mine — for digging
  12. lie — to recline
  13. rash — a series
  14. drill — army training
  15. chest — of your body
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. chest — a box
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. chest — of your body
  22. game — a match
  23. stand — to bear
  24. drill — a practice

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