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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 120 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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. staff — employees
  4. land — to come down
  5. root — of a word
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. race — the arms race
  8. land — a country
  9. sharp — clever
  10. rest — what's left
  11. tube — the underground
  12. staff — employees
  13. race — a contest
  14. staff — a stick
  15. rest — what's left
  16. rest — a break
  17. root — the cause
  18. wound — an injury
  19. wound — an injury
  20. land — ground
  21. race — humankind
  22. root — of a plant
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. tube — a container

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