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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. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. toast — the most admired
  3. ground — the earth
  4. toast — a drink to someone
  5. file — a line of people
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. tube — a container
  8. pass — a permit
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. ground — a position
  12. tube — the underground
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. sharp — clever
  15. band — a ring
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. file — a document
  18. band — a music group
  19. ground — crushed
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. file — a tool
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. toast — bread
  24. band — a rubber band

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