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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. ground — the earth
  3. craft — boats
  4. cold — an illness
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. ground — a position
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. tube — a container
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. pop — soda
  11. rush — hurry
  12. cold — not warm
  13. pop — to visit
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. tube — the underground
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. fall — to drop
  18. craft — a skill
  19. fall — the season
  20. ground — crushed
  21. pop — music
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. plane — a tool
  24. fall — to drop

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