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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: mark · bear · wave · tube · chest · straw · content · cell

  1. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. tube — the underground
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. cell — in biology
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. content — the amount
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. chest — of your body
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. mark — a trace
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. cell — a phone
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. content — happy
  16. bear — the animal
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. chest — a box
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. mark — a grade
  21. chest — of your body
  22. tube — a container
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. cell — in a prison

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