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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.

Make a worksheet

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: tube · pitch · wind · file · mug · hide · court · spring

  1. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. mug — a face
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. file — a document
  7. file — a line of people
  8. court — of law
  9. tube — the underground
  10. wind — moving air
  11. tube — a container
  12. file — a tool
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. court — of a king
  15. mug — a cup
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. wind — moving air
  18. court — for sport
  19. pitch — completely
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. spring — the season
  22. mug — to rob
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. spring — of water

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