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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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: lean · cold · scale · bass · staff · tube · squash · kid

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. tube — a container
  4. kid — child
  5. bass — low music
  6. kid — to tease
  7. cold — not warm
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. scale — in music
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. cold — an illness
  13. staff — employees
  14. squash — the sport
  15. lean — thin
  16. scale — size or range
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. bass — the fish
  19. tube — the underground
  20. squash — to crush
  21. staff — employees
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. lean — to bend
  24. staff — a stick

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