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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 need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. land — ground
  3. present — a gift
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. pit — in a race
  6. tube — a container
  7. file — a document
  8. face — part of the head
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. pit — a hole
  11. bore — to tire
  12. land — a country
  13. file — a line of people
  14. face — to confront
  15. present — there
  16. bore — to drill
  17. stem — to come from
  18. file — a tool
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. face — to point toward
  22. land — to come down
  23. tube — the underground
  24. present — the time now

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