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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. net — for catching
  3. track — a song
  4. net — in sport
  5. fine — all right
  6. track — a path
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. cold — not warm
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. tube — the underground
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. rash — a series
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. track — to keep track
  16. rash — hasty
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. fine — high quality
  19. cold — an illness
  20. net — after costs
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. tube — a container
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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