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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 124 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 want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. chest — of your body
  3. spring — the season
  4. firm — a company
  5. firm — decided
  6. degree — an amount
  7. firm — steady
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. degree — temperature
  10. degree — from a university
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. spring — of water
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. track — a path
  16. chest — a box
  17. track — a song
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. chest — of your body
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. fork — in a road
  22. tube — the underground
  23. spring — a coil
  24. track — to keep track

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