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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: kick · tube · content · pitch · patient · bat · scale · spring

  1. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. pitch — completely
  5. spring — the season
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. scale — in music
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. tube — a container
  12. tube — the underground
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. kick — in football
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. spring — a coil
  18. content — happy
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. bat — the animal
  21. content — the amount
  22. spring — of water
  23. scale — size or range
  24. content — videos and posts

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