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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 want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. The people resisted their cruel ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. board — to get on
  3. game — wild animals
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. board — a committee
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. pop — soda
  11. game — a match
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. kid — to tease
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. tube — the underground
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. pop — music
  19. kid — child
  20. cold — an illness
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. pop — to visit
  23. cold — not warm
  24. ruler — a monarch

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