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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. prune — to trim
  3. tube — the underground
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. wind — moving air
  6. rest — what's left
  7. rest — what's left
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. pop — soda
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. wound — an injury
  12. wound — an injury
  13. prune — to trim
  14. net — in sport
  15. pop — music
  16. rest — a break
  17. net — after costs
  18. wind — moving air
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. tube — a container
  21. bay — a part of the sea
  22. pop — to visit
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. net — for catching

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