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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 want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. roll — a list
  3. ground — the earth
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. tube — the underground
  6. branch — a division
  7. hand — in cards
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. object — to protest
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. object — a thing
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. object — an aim
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. wake — a trail
  18. ground — a position
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. ground — crushed
  21. hand — help
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. roll — a cake

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