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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 got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. content — happy
  3. kid — to tease
  4. tube — a container
  5. hand — help
  6. safe — a strongbox
  7. chair — a leader
  8. row — a line
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. wax — to grow
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. kid — child
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. row — to paddle
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. content — the amount
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. tube — the underground
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. row — a quarrel

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