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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. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. tear — from crying
  5. cold — an illness
  6. tear — to rip
  7. content — happy
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. tube — a container
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. track — to keep track
  15. tube — the underground
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. content — the amount
  18. track — a path
  19. tear — from crying
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. cold — not warm
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. foot — part of the body
  24. track — a song

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