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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 120 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: race · wave · tube · spring · content · calf · band · charge

  1. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — in control
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. race — humankind
  4. content — happy
  5. charge — a price
  6. tube — the underground
  7. content — the amount
  8. charge — electricity
  9. band — a ring
  10. spring — of water
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. race — a contest
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. race — the arms race
  15. tube — a container
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. band — a music group
  19. spring — a coil
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. spring — the season
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. band — a rubber band

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