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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  12. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. swing — to play on
  3. file — a document
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. chest — of your body
  7. tube — the underground
  8. net — in sport
  9. file — a line of people
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. jam — to spread on bread
  12. jam — a tight spot
  13. mine — for digging
  14. tube — a container
  15. swing — music
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. net — after costs
  18. swing — in golf
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. chest — of your body
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. file — a tool
  24. chest — a box

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