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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. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. My mare is ________________ in color.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. cold — an illness
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. pop — music
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. swing — to play on
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. mine — for digging
  11. staff — a stick
  12. swing — in golf
  13. cold — not warm
  14. bay — a horse colour
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. tube — the underground
  17. swing — music
  18. staff — employees
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. pop — soda
  21. staff — employees
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. pop — to visit

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