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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 120 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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. tube — a container
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. press — to push
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. press — newspapers
  11. press — a publisher
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. wind — moving air
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. tube — the underground
  18. sharp — clever
  19. wind — moving air
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. racket — for tennis

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