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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. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. net — for catching
  5. face — to point toward
  6. face — part of the head
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. tube — the underground
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. net — after costs
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. face — to confront
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. capital — a city
  18. capital — money
  19. fork — in a road
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. tube — a container
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. net — in sport

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