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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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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. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. staff — employees
  4. rest — what's left
  5. staff — employees
  6. rest — a break
  7. ground — a position
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. wax — to grow
  11. mark — a trace
  12. cold — an illness
  13. ground — the earth
  14. staff — a stick
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. tube — the underground
  17. cold — not warm
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. rest — what's left
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. mark — a grade
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. ground — crushed

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