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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 116 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. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. tube — the underground
  4. hand — help
  5. court — for sport
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. fine — all right
  9. court — of law
  10. fine — high quality
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. tube — a container
  14. hand — in cards
  15. court — of a king
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. band — a ring
  18. band — a music group

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