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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: pit · chip · perch · cold · hide · mine · tube · firm

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. firm — a company
  3. firm — decided
  4. chip — to eat
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. pit — in a race
  10. chip — for betting
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. tube — the underground
  13. firm — steady
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. pit — a hole
  16. cold — not warm
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. perch — the fish
  23. tube — a container
  24. mine — for digging

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