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

Word bank: foot · bore · rule · tube · face · cell · clip · track

  1. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. foot — part of the body
  3. face — part of the head
  4. rule — a law
  5. tube — the underground
  6. tube — a container
  7. foot — a measure
  8. clip — a video
  9. rule — government
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. track — a song
  12. face — to point toward
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. cell — a phone
  15. track — to keep track
  16. cell — in biology
  17. clip — for paper
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. face — to confront
  20. track — a path
  21. bore — to tire
  22. bore — to drill
  23. clip — to cut
  24. foot — the bottom

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