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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: present · last · fan · capital · bear · tube · face · bore

  1. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. bore — to tire
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. bore — to drill
  5. present — a gift
  6. bear — the animal
  7. tube — the underground
  8. capital — money
  9. last — final
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. present — the time now
  12. face — to confront
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. tube — a container
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. last — finally
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. last — to go on
  20. capital — a city
  21. face — part of the head
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. face — to point toward
  24. present — there

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