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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 chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — to rule out
  2. fine — all right
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. spring — of water
  6. spring — a coil
  7. tube — a container
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. file — a tool
  10. rule — government
  11. pit — a hole
  12. tube — the underground
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. scale — in music
  15. march — the month
  16. file — a document
  17. fine — high quality
  18. march — the month
  19. spring — the season
  20. rule — a law
  21. scale — size or range
  22. pit — in a race
  23. file — a line of people
  24. march — music

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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