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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'll be taking the ________________.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. lean — to bend
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. land — a country
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. clip — a video
  8. clip — to cut
  9. land — to come down
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. chest — of your body
  13. cue — a hint
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. chest — a box
  16. cue — a signal
  17. vault — a safe
  18. tube — a container
  19. chest — of your body
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. cue — for pool
  22. land — ground
  23. lean — thin
  24. clip — for paper

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