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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. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. mug — to rob
  3. mug — a face
  4. mug — a cup
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. race — a contest
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. content — happy
  12. content — the amount
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. kid — child
  16. tube — the underground
  17. tube — a container
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. capital — a city
  20. kid — to tease
  21. race — humankind
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. race — the arms race
  24. capital — money

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