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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 want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. wound — an injury
  3. shower — rain
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. stock — goods
  6. press — to push
  7. press — a publisher
  8. press — newspapers
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. shower — to wash
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. dip — to sink
  13. wound — an injury
  14. stock — shares
  15. spring — a coil
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. tube — the underground
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. fork — in a road
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. spring — of water
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. spring — the season

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