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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 players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. tube — a container
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. rule — government
  5. tube — the underground
  6. rule — a law
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. fork — in a road
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. can — a tin
  14. pitch — completely
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. can — a tin
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. can — to be able to
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. trunk — of a car

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