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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. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. wind — moving air
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. rest — a break
  5. wind — moving air
  6. rest — what's left
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. scale — size or range
  10. tube — the underground
  11. drill — a practice
  12. drill — army training
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. lean — thin
  15. spring — the season
  16. rock — music
  17. rock — a stone
  18. scale — in music
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. drill — the tool
  21. spring — of water
  22. lean — to bend
  23. rest — what's left
  24. spring — a coil

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