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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. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. race — humankind
  3. tube — the underground
  4. prune — to trim
  5. court — of a king
  6. court — of law
  7. root — of a plant
  8. saw — the tool
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. bass — low music
  11. race — the arms race
  12. bass — the fish
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. prune — to trim
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. root — of a word
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. court — for sport
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. race — a contest
  23. root — the cause
  24. saw — the tool

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