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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 120 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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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: content · season · foot · tube · rush · net · straw · march

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  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. tube — in a tire
  2. rush — hurry
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. foot — a measure
  5. content — happy
  6. march — the month
  7. march — the month
  8. net — for catching
  9. tube — a container
  10. season — in sport
  11. march — music
  12. season — of the year
  13. tube — the underground
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. net — after costs
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. content — the amount
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. net — in sport
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. straw — dry grass
  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