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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. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. tube — a container
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. shower — to wash
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. can — a tin
  7. march — music
  8. face — to point toward
  9. can — to be able to
  10. band — a ring
  11. march — the month
  12. face — to confront
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. march — the month
  15. can — a tin
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. shower — rain
  18. squash — the sport
  19. squash — to crush
  20. tube — the underground
  21. face — part of the head
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. band — a music group
  24. coach — a trainer

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