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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. last — final
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. tube — a container
  5. last — to go on
  6. capital — a city
  7. kick — in football
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. drill — army training
  12. drill — the tool
  13. last — finally
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. capital — money
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. tube — the underground
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. drill — a practice
  24. branch — a division

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