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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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. spring — of water
  4. rest — a break
  5. press — to push
  6. rest — what's left
  7. hand — in cards
  8. press — a publisher
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. hand — help
  11. tube — the underground
  12. track — to keep track
  13. press — newspapers
  14. track — a path
  15. rest — what's left
  16. spring — the season
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. spring — a coil
  19. ball — a great time
  20. track — a song
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. tube — a container
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. snap — to click

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