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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. bear — the animal
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. bear — the animal
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. tube — the underground
  10. cold — an illness
  11. cold — not warm
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. cell — a phone
  15. wound — an injury
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. board — a committee
  19. calf — of the leg
  20. tube — a container
  21. wound — an injury
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. board — to get on
  24. cell — in biology

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