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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. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. rush — hurry
  3. shower — to wash
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. capital — a city
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. saw — the tool
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. tube — the underground
  15. rest — what's left
  16. rest — a break
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. saw — the tool
  19. tube — a container
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. capital — money
  23. shower — rain
  24. rest — what's left

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