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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: wave · squash · tube · race · pitcher · land · perch · calf

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. tube — a container
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. land — a country
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. perch — the fish
  11. squash — to crush
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. land — ground
  14. tube — the underground
  15. squash — the sport
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. race — the arms race
  18. race — a contest
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. race — humankind
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. land — to come down
  24. wave — of the sea

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