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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. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. rush — hurry
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. cell — in biology
  6. mark — a grade
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. bat — the animal
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. spring — the season
  11. pound — a weight
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. spring — a coil
  21. spring — of water
  22. tube — a container
  23. tube — the underground
  24. cell — a phone

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