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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. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. The tickets are free of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. tube — a container
  3. capital — money
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. tube — the underground
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. charge — electricity
  10. band — a music group
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. charge — in control
  13. content — the amount
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. degree — temperature
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. bulb — for light
  18. degree — from a university
  19. content — happy
  20. capital — a city
  21. bulb — for light
  22. band — a ring
  23. degree — an amount
  24. charge — a price

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