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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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. mate — a friend
  5. cold — not warm
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. vault — a safe
  8. tube — the underground
  9. mate — to breed
  10. tube — a container
  11. rush — hurry
  12. present — there
  13. present — the time now
  14. present — a gift
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. cold — an illness
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. bat — the animal
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. mate — a partner

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