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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. My mare is ________________ in color.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. foot — a measure
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. tear — from crying
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. toast — bread
  10. tube — the underground
  11. tear — from crying
  12. court — for sport
  13. court — of law
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. band — a ring
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. tube — a container
  19. bay — a horse colour
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. tear — to rip
  22. band — a music group
  23. court — of a king
  24. toast — the most admired

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