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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. tear — to rip
  3. tube — the underground
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. last — to go on
  7. tube — a container
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. squash — to crush
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. last — finally
  14. last — final
  15. squash — the sport
  16. tear — from crying
  17. kid — to tease
  18. tear — from crying

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