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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. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — part of the body
  2. tube — a container
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. spell — letters
  5. dip — to sink
  6. race — the arms race
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. spell — a short time
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. stem — to come from
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. foot — a measure
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. wax — to grow
  18. race — humankind
  19. tube — the underground
  20. bat — the animal
  21. spell — magic
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. race — a contest

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