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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. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. My father caught me by the ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. net — for catching
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. tube — a container
  5. net — after costs
  6. snap — to click
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. game — a match
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. spring — of water
  11. ruler — a monarch
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. spring — the season
  15. tube — the underground
  16. game — wild animals
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. spring — a coil
  19. stem — to come from
  20. net — in sport
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. tube — in a tire

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