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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. plane — a tool
  4. ground — the earth
  5. hand — help
  6. cap — of ice
  7. rash — hasty
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. staff — employees
  10. tube — a container
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. tube — the underground
  14. ground — a position
  15. staff — a stick
  16. cap — a hat
  17. staff — employees
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. rash — a series
  20. hand — in cards
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. cap — a lid
  24. ground — crushed

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