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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 120 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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. land — to come down
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. fall — to drop
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. fall — the season
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. vault — a safe
  12. tube — a container
  13. current — of water
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. land — ground
  16. fall — to drop
  17. wax — to grow
  18. tube — the underground
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. current — electric
  22. land — a country
  23. current — happening now
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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