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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. tube — the underground
  4. tube — a container
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. perch — the fish
  7. content — happy
  8. charge — in control
  9. can — to be able to
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. file — a tool
  12. file — a line of people
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. rush — hurry
  15. file — a document
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. content — the amount
  18. charge — a price
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. charge — electricity
  23. can — a tin
  24. can — a tin

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