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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. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. tube — a container
  5. kick — in football
  6. tube — the underground
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. pit — a hole
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. march — the month
  16. stem — to come from
  17. mine — for digging
  18. march — music
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. march — the month
  21. sharp — clever
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. wave — with your hand
  24. pit — in a race

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