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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 need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. tube — a container
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. land — ground
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. wax — to grow
  8. game — wild animals
  9. tube — the underground
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. land — a country
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. pound — a weight
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. bore — to tire
  17. bore — to drill
  18. bat — the animal
  19. game — a match
  20. land — to come down
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. bat — in an idiom

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