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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 120 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. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. tube — a container
  3. club — a group
  4. tear — to rip
  5. spring — a coil
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. mate — a partner
  8. mate — to breed
  9. club — for dancing
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. spring — the season
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. current — happening now
  14. current — of water
  15. tube — the underground
  16. tear — from crying
  17. current — electric
  18. tear — from crying
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. club — for golf
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. spring — of water
  23. mate — a friend
  24. wake — a trail

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