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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 have a corn on my right ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — part of the body
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. game — a match
  5. tube — a container
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. bound — tied together
  8. cold — not warm
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. wax — to grow
  11. bound — certain
  12. cold — an illness
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. tube — the underground
  15. foot — a measure
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. bound — obliged
  19. branch — a division
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. game — wild animals
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. tube — in a tire

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