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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 need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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. tube — the underground
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. roll — a cake
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. chest — of your body
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. current — electric
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. roll — a list
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. kid — child
  15. kid — to tease
  16. staff — employees
  17. current — of water
  18. row — a line
  19. row — to paddle
  20. current — happening now
  21. staff — a stick
  22. chest — a box
  23. staff — employees
  24. chest — of your body

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