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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 116 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'll be taking the ________________.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. content — happy
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. spring — the season
  8. tube — a container
  9. spring — a coil
  10. chip — for betting
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. chip — to eat
  15. spring — of water
  16. cell — in biology
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. cell — a phone
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. wave — with your hand
  24. content — the amount

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