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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'll be taking the ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. band — a music group
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. stock — shares
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. content — the amount
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. content — happy
  13. mine — for digging
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. tube — a container
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. stock — goods
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. band — a ring
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. season — in sport
  24. season — of the year

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