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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. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. march — music
  5. can — to be able to
  6. can — a tin
  7. tube — a container
  8. face — to point toward
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. firm — steady
  11. cold — not warm
  12. cold — an illness
  13. band — a ring
  14. march — the month
  15. can — a tin
  16. face — part of the head
  17. band — a music group
  18. tube — the underground
  19. cell — a phone
  20. firm — decided
  21. cell — in biology
  22. face — to confront
  23. firm — a company
  24. tube — in a tire

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