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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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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: mark · clip · rest · craft · saw · hide · tube · chair

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. rest — what's left
  5. rest — a break
  6. saw — the tool
  7. craft — a skill
  8. clip — to cut
  9. mark — a trace
  10. mark — a grade
  11. chair — a leader
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. clip — for paper
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. saw — the tool
  18. tube — a container
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. tube — the underground
  21. rest — what's left
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. clip — a video
  24. craft — boats

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