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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.

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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 · fork · bat · chip · fine · saw · root · pound

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. fine — high quality
  9. tube — a container
  10. pound — a weight
  11. root — of a word
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. chip — to eat
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. chip — for betting
  16. fine — all right
  17. bat — the animal
  18. root — the cause
  19. saw — the tool
  20. fork — in a road
  21. tube — the underground
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. root — of a plant

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