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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'll be taking the ________________.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. tube — the underground
  3. mate — a friend
  4. bound — obliged
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. tube — a container
  7. spell — a short time
  8. game — wild animals
  9. deal — to handle
  10. bound — certain
  11. mate — to breed
  12. bound — tied together
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. dip — to sink
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. spell — magic
  17. mate — a partner
  18. capital — a city
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. game — a match
  21. spell — letters
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. capital — money
  24. capital — a big letter

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