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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. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  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. leaves — lets stay
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. pop — to visit
  4. wax — to grow
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. cell — in biology
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. deal — to handle
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. tube — the underground
  11. tube — a container
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. cell — a phone
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. plane — a tool
  21. pop — music
  22. pop — soda
  23. plane — in geometry
  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