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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  22. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. ground — crushed
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. bulb — for light
  6. ground — the earth
  7. club — a group
  8. tube — a container
  9. club — for dancing
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. wind — moving air
  13. cold — not warm
  14. cold — an illness
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. ground — a position
  17. foot — a measure
  18. content — the amount
  19. content — happy
  20. bulb — for light
  21. bulb — of a plant
  22. foot — the bottom
  23. club — for golf
  24. tube — the underground

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