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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. last — final
  3. current — of water
  4. row — a line
  5. row — to paddle
  6. last — finally
  7. last — to go on
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. tube — a container
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. saw — the tool
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. mine — for digging
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. saw — the tool
  19. root — the cause
  20. current — electric
  21. current — happening now
  22. tube — the underground
  23. root — of a plant
  24. root — of a word

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