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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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468
Word bank
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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. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. can — to be able to
  3. cell — in biology
  4. game — wild animals
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. cell — a phone
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. game — a match
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. band — a music group
  16. band — a ring
  17. chair — a leader
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. can — a tin
  21. tube — a container
  22. tube — the underground
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. fan — a supporter

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