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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: wind · band · mine · roll · rest · pass · tube · bound

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. mine — for digging
  4. wind — moving air
  5. wind — moving air
  6. rest — what's left
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. tube — the underground
  9. bound — certain
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. band — a ring
  13. tube — a container
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. roll — a cake
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. bound — obliged
  18. rest — a break
  19. pass — a permit
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. roll — a list
  22. band — a music group
  23. bound — tied together
  24. rest — what's left

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