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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. sharp — clever
  5. tube — the underground
  6. root — of a plant
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. root — of a word
  11. drill — a practice
  12. kid — child
  13. drill — the tool
  14. tube — a container
  15. fall — to drop
  16. mark — a trace
  17. kid — to tease
  18. rush — hurry
  19. drill — army training
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. fall — the season
  22. fall — to drop
  23. root — the cause
  24. mark — a grade

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