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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 met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. content — happy
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. wind — moving air
  5. wind — moving air
  6. drill — army training
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. tube — a container
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. safe — a strongbox
  15. drill — the tool
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. content — the amount
  18. stem — to come from
  19. mine — for digging
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. tube — the underground
  22. drill — a practice
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. wax — to grow

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