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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 116 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 put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. tube — a container
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. tube — the underground
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. saw — the tool
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. chair — a leader
  12. hand — help
  13. spell — magic
  14. wake — a trail
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. rash — hasty
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. saw — the tool
  20. spell — a short time
  21. rash — a series
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. spell — letters
  24. hand — in cards

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