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

Word bank: pitcher · band · rule · saw · bowl · tube · last · squash

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  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. tube — in a tire
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. tube — a container
  5. rule — a law
  6. saw — the tool
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. last — final
  10. last — to go on
  11. band — a ring
  12. rule — government
  13. squash — to crush
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. last — finally
  18. squash — the sport
  19. tube — the underground
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. saw — the tool
  23. band — a music group
  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