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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. staff — employees
  3. tube — the underground
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. staff — employees
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. tube — a container
  8. band — a music group
  9. march — music
  10. band — a ring
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. mark — a grade
  14. march — the month
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. staff — a stick
  18. face — to point toward
  19. face — to confront
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. mark — a trace
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. face — part of the head

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