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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. root — of a word
  3. tube — a container
  4. season — in sport
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. fine — all right
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. root — of a plant
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. bass — the fish
  12. band — a music group
  13. season — of the year
  14. tube — the underground
  15. band — a ring
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. branch — a division
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. bass — low music
  21. root — the cause
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. fine — high quality

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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