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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 116 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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. tube — a container
  4. root — the cause
  5. clip — a video
  6. scale — size or range
  7. deal — to handle
  8. mate — to breed
  9. clip — to cut
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. root — of a word
  15. mate — a partner
  16. clip — for paper
  17. scale — in music
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. root — of a plant
  21. mine — for digging
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. tube — the underground

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