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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. When will it ________________ you to start?

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. chip — for betting
  4. bat — the animal
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. capital — money
  7. tube — a container
  8. suit — clothes
  9. last — to go on
  10. fork — in a road
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. stock — goods
  13. suit — in cards
  14. capital — a city
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. last — finally
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. chip — to eat
  20. last — final
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. stock — shares
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. suit — to fit

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