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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. kick — in football
  4. hand — help
  5. drill — a practice
  6. drill — army training
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. tube — the underground
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. shower — rain
  11. shower — to wash
  12. pit — in a race
  13. hand — in cards
  14. mug — to rob
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. mug — a cup
  17. pit — a hole
  18. mug — a face
  19. tube — a container
  20. last — finally
  21. drill — the tool
  22. last — final
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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