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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. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. key — for a lock
  3. key — the most important part
  4. face — to point toward
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. toast — bread
  7. face — part of the head
  8. key — in music
  9. tube — a container
  10. cell — a phone
  11. toast — a drink to someone
  12. roll — a list
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. cell — in biology
  15. mug — a cup
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. wake — a trail
  19. mug — to rob
  20. face — to confront
  21. tube — the underground
  22. mug — a face
  23. roll — a cake
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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