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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. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. kid — child
  3. track — a song
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. spell — a short time
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. root — of a plant
  8. track — a path
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. tube — a container
  11. kid — to tease
  12. spell — letters
  13. tube — the underground
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. spell — magic
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. root — the cause
  18. track — to keep track
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. root — of a word
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. temple — a place of worship

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