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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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. prune — to trim
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. tube — the underground
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. wax — to grow
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. game — wild animals
  11. prune — to trim
  12. rash — a series
  13. game — a match
  14. can — a tin
  15. deal — to handle
  16. rash — hasty
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. tube — a container
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. pound — a weight
  22. can — a tin
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. deal — a big deal

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