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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 116 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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. tube — the underground
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. lean — thin
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. file — a document
  9. ball — a great time
  10. file — a line of people
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. craft — a skill
  13. craft — boats
  14. present — the time now
  15. file — a tool
  16. lean — to bend
  17. ball — a dance
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. tube — a container
  20. kid — to tease
  21. present — there
  22. kid — child
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. present — a gift

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