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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. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. tube — the underground
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. band — a ring
  5. object — to protest
  6. capital — a city
  7. pit — in a race
  8. tube — a container
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. object — a thing
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. plane — a tool
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. capital — money
  15. rock — music
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. pit — a hole
  21. band — a music group
  22. rock — a stone
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. object — an aim

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