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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. Should I buy a wireless ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. tube — the underground
  3. can — to be able to
  4. track — a path
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. clip — to cut
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. tube — a container
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. rash — a series
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. clip — a video
  15. clip — for paper
  16. track — to keep track
  17. bat — the animal
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. track — a song
  22. can — a tin
  23. can — a tin
  24. mouse — for a computer

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