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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. content — the amount
  4. spring — of water
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. plane — a tool
  7. tube — the underground
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. present — a gift
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. content — happy
  18. deal — to handle
  19. spring — a coil
  20. spring — the season
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. present — the time now
  24. tube — a container

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