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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. file — a document
  3. file — a tool
  4. wake — a trail
  5. wind — moving air
  6. root — the cause
  7. tube — a container
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. root — of a word
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. lean — to bend
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. tube — the underground
  14. band — a music group
  15. file — a line of people
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. rule — government
  19. root — of a plant
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. rule — a law
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. lean — thin
  24. wind — moving air

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