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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 want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. Where did you ________________ them?
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. cap — a hat
  3. mug — a cup
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. swing — in golf
  7. swing — to play on
  8. net — after costs
  9. tear — to rip
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. cap — a lid
  13. net — for catching
  14. tear — from crying
  15. tube — the underground
  16. tear — from crying
  17. mug — a face
  18. swing — music
  19. plane — a tool
  20. cap — of ice
  21. mug — to rob
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. net — in sport
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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