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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. last — finally
  3. tube — the underground
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. pop — to visit
  6. scale — in music
  7. kick — in football
  8. pop — soda
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. last — to go on
  12. last — final
  13. tube — a container
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. scale — size or range
  18. pop — music
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. shower — rain
  23. bore — to drill
  24. bore — to tire

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