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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. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — to attach or keep to
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. tube — a container
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. scale — in music
  7. march — the month
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. tube — the underground
  10. march — the month
  11. band — a music group
  12. lean — thin
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. tear — to rip
  16. lean — to bend
  17. band — a ring
  18. scale — size or range
  19. tear — from crying
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. march — music
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. tear — from crying

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