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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. rest — what's left
  4. band — a music group
  5. cell — in biology
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. roll — a list
  9. rest — what's left
  10. cell — a phone
  11. band — a ring
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. spring — the season
  14. tube — the underground
  15. tube — a container
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. rush — hurry
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. roll — a cake
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. rest — a break
  24. spring — a coil

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