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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
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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: game · tube · shower · pitcher · can · stock · file · mug

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. tube — a container
  4. stock — goods
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. mug — a face
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. file — a document
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. can — to be able to
  12. mug — a cup
  13. shower — to wash
  14. file — a tool
  15. mug — to rob
  16. game — wild animals
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. shower — rain
  19. tube — the underground
  20. stock — shares
  21. can — a tin
  22. can — a tin
  23. game — a match
  24. file — a line of people

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