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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: tube · ball · nail · cue · present · lean · bat · fall

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. present — a gift
  4. lean — thin
  5. ball — a dance
  6. tube — the underground
  7. lean — to bend
  8. fall — to drop
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. fall — the season
  11. fall — to drop
  12. cue — for pool
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. cue — a signal
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. tube — a container
  18. present — there
  19. cue — a hint
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. present — the time now
  23. ball — a great time
  24. nail — for a hammer

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