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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. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. tear — to rip
  6. tear — from crying
  7. tube — a container
  8. cap — a hat
  9. craft — a skill
  10. mark — a grade
  11. mark — a trace
  12. tube — the underground
  13. cap — of ice
  14. chip — for betting
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. tear — from crying
  17. chip — to eat
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. cap — a lid
  23. cold — not warm
  24. cold — an illness

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