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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. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. tube — a container
  3. tube — the underground
  4. cold — not warm
  5. spell — magic
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. foot — the bottom
  8. spell — letters
  9. deal — to handle
  10. spell — a short time
  11. pound — a weight
  12. fine — all right
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. fine — high quality
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. foot — a measure
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. cold — an illness

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