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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  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. racket — for tennis
  2. content — happy
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. tube — the underground
  5. saw — the tool
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. kick — in football
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. mark — a trace
  11. wax — to grow
  12. content — the amount
  13. game — a match
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. tube — a container
  16. saw — the tool
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. game — wild animals
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. mark — a grade
  23. content — videos and posts
  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