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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. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. cap — a hat
  3. cap — a lid
  4. pitch — completely
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. perch — the fish
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. deal — to handle
  10. tube — the underground
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. cell — in biology
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. content — the amount
  16. cell — a phone
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. content — happy
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. cap — of ice
  21. ball — a dance
  22. tube — a container
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. ball — a great time

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