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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
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: pitcher · ruler · tube · squash · fall · file · stock · chest

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. tube — a container
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. file — a line of people
  5. squash — to crush
  6. stock — shares
  7. fall — the season
  8. chest — of your body
  9. ruler — a monarch
  10. fall — to drop
  11. fall — to drop
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. chest — of your body
  14. chest — a box
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. file — a document
  17. squash — the sport
  18. file — a tool
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. tube — the underground
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. stock — goods
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. ruler — for measuring

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