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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. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. root — of a word
  3. wound — an injury
  4. band — a ring
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. wound — an injury
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. wax — to grow
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. root — of a plant
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. tube — the underground
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. fork — in a road
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. root — the cause
  20. band — a music group
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. tube — a container
  24. date — the fruit

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