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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 120 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. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. tube — the underground
  4. club — for dancing
  5. club — for golf
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. sharp — clever
  11. bulb — for light
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. tube — a container
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. bulb — for light
  17. club — a group
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. bat — the animal
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. wax — to grow
  23. wind — moving air
  24. wind — moving air

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