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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 need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. bound — tied together
  3. last — to go on
  4. last — finally
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. tear — from crying
  7. wound — an injury
  8. bound — certain
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. branch — a division
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. tear — to rip
  13. chip — to eat
  14. bound — obliged
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. wound — an injury
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. tube — a container
  20. last — final
  21. chip — for betting
  22. tear — from crying
  23. tube — the underground
  24. fan — a supporter

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