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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 116 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. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. season — in sport
  3. prune — to trim
  4. spring — the season
  5. staff — a stick
  6. staff — employees
  7. spring — a coil
  8. march — the month
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. board — to get on
  11. tube — a container
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. staff — employees
  14. wake — a trail
  15. spring — of water
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. tube — the underground
  19. prune — to trim
  20. board — a committee
  21. march — the month
  22. march — music
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. season — of the year

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