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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. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. roll — a cake
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. tube — a container
  7. tube — the underground
  8. wound — an injury
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. tear — from crying
  13. chair — a leader
  14. tear — from crying
  15. foot — a measure
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. wound — an injury
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. bore — to drill
  20. roll — a list
  21. bore — to tire
  22. tear — to rip
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. pitcher — a jug

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