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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 had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. My mare is ________________ in color.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. capital — money
  3. bay — to keep at bay
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. dip — to sink
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. tube — a container
  13. tube — the underground
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. row — to paddle
  16. row — a line
  17. capital — a city
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. cold — an illness
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. bay — a part of the sea
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. cold — not warm
  24. bay — a horse colour

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