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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. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. chest — of your body
  3. kid — child
  4. tube — the underground
  5. cue — a hint
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. current — of water
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. tube — a container
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. land — a country
  13. land — ground
  14. kid — to tease
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. chest — of your body
  17. current — electric
  18. land — to come down
  19. chest — a box
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. current — happening now
  22. cue — a signal
  23. cue — for pool
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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