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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. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. game — a match
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. tear — to rip
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. spring — a coil
  9. spring — the season
  10. pit — in a race
  11. tear — from crying
  12. spring — of water
  13. deal — to handle
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. pit — a hole
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. tear — from crying
  20. game — wild animals
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. calf — of the leg
  24. tube — a container

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