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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. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. face — to confront
  4. band — a music group
  5. band — a ring
  6. last — to go on
  7. stem — to come from
  8. last — final
  9. club — for dancing
  10. cap — of ice
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. club — a group
  13. last — finally
  14. cap — a hat
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. cap — a lid
  17. tube — the underground
  18. rock — a stone
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. face — part of the head
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. rock — music
  23. club — for golf
  24. face — to point toward

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