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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 116 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 want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. kid — child
  3. cap — of ice
  4. craft — a skill
  5. lean — to bend
  6. lean — thin
  7. wind — moving air
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. press — to push
  10. tube — the underground
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. wind — moving air
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. kid — to tease
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. press — a publisher
  18. cap — a lid
  19. press — newspapers
  20. cap — a hat
  21. craft — boats
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. wave — with your hand

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