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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. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. tube — a container
  3. snap — to click
  4. root — the cause
  5. fall — to drop
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. tube — the underground
  8. rash — hasty
  9. land — to come down
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. band — a ring
  12. land — ground
  13. root — of a word
  14. fall — to drop
  15. fall — the season
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. rash — a series
  20. land — a country
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. root — of a plant
  23. band — a music group
  24. rash — on the skin

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