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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 was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. mine — for digging
  4. tube — the underground
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. ball — a dance
  7. board — to get on
  8. tube — a container
  9. ball — a great time
  10. kick — in football
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. rule — government
  14. board — a committee
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. foot — a measure
  18. rule — a law
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. straw — dry grass

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