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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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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: cell · pitcher · arm · firm · tube · straw · plane · kid

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. tube — a container
  6. cell — a phone
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. firm — a company
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. plane — a tool
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. tube — the underground
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. kid — to tease
  20. firm — steady
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. cell — in biology
  24. firm — decided

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