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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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. My father caught me by the ________________.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. content — the amount
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. rock — a stone
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. sharp — clever
  9. plane — a tool
  10. tube — a container
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. rock — music
  13. chest — of your body
  14. chest — of your body
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. chest — a box
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. content — happy
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. capital — money
  23. tube — the underground
  24. capital — a city

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