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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 124 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. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. capital — a city
  5. deal — to handle
  6. race — humankind
  7. race — a contest
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. capital — money
  10. band — a music group
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. track — a song
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. track — to keep track
  17. track — a path
  18. band — a ring
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. race — the arms race
  21. tube — a container
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. date — the fruit
  24. tube — the underground

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