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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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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. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. tube — the underground
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. spring — a coil
  5. key — for a lock
  6. key — the most important part
  7. band — a ring
  8. ball — a great time
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. key — in music
  11. track — a song
  12. band — a music group
  13. tube — a container
  14. track — to keep track
  15. spring — of water
  16. track — a path
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. board — a committee
  19. spring — the season
  20. present — a gift
  21. present — there
  22. present — the time now
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. ball — a dance

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