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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. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. court — for sport
  4. saw — the tool
  5. tube — a container
  6. board — to get on
  7. bat — the animal
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. court — of law
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. tube — the underground
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. net — for catching
  15. net — after costs
  16. kick — in football
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. court — of a king
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. saw — the tool
  22. board — a committee
  23. net — in sport
  24. bat — for baseball

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