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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. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. foot — a measure
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. squash — the sport
  6. tube — the underground
  7. pop — music
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. bank — of a river
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. pop — to visit
  13. tube — a container
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. scale — size or range
  16. sharp — clever
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. bank — for money
  19. squash — to crush
  20. bat — the animal
  21. pop — soda
  22. bank — for money
  23. scale — in music
  24. foot — part of the body

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