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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. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. pop — soda
  4. mug — a cup
  5. mug — to rob
  6. pop — to visit
  7. craft — boats
  8. pop — music
  9. cap — a lid
  10. cap — a hat
  11. craft — a skill
  12. kid — to tease
  13. court — for sport
  14. cap — of ice
  15. race — a contest
  16. court — of a king
  17. kid — child
  18. mug — a face
  19. race — humankind
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. court — of law
  22. race — the arms race
  23. tube — a container
  24. craft — a handicraft

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