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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 120 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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. race — the arms race
  3. chest — of your body
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. staff — employees
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. wind — moving air
  8. staff — employees
  9. tube — the underground
  10. wind — moving air
  11. race — humankind
  12. chest — a box
  13. wound — an injury
  14. race — a contest
  15. tube — a container
  16. root — of a plant
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. wound — an injury
  19. chest — of your body
  20. root — the cause
  21. staff — a stick
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. bat — the animal
  24. root — of a word

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