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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: face · cue · bay · mate · game · capital · cap · tube

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. My mare is ________________ in color.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. face — to point toward
  3. cue — a hint
  4. capital — a city
  5. game — wild animals
  6. tube — a container
  7. bay — a part of the sea
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. face — part of the head
  10. game — a match
  11. face — to confront
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. cue — a signal
  14. cap — a hat
  15. mate — a friend
  16. cue — for pool
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. mate — a partner
  19. bay — a horse colour
  20. tube — the underground
  21. capital — money
  22. mate — to breed
  23. cap — of ice
  24. cap — a lid

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