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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: bear · band · chest · file · fork · charge · shower · tube

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. The tickets are free of ________________.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. tube — the underground
  3. band — a music group
  4. chest — a box
  5. tube — a container
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. file — a line of people
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. file — a document
  11. bear — the animal
  12. file — a tool
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. chest — of your body
  15. bear — the animal
  16. shower — rain
  17. charge — a price
  18. band — a ring
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. charge — in control
  22. fork — in a road
  23. shower — to wash
  24. charge — electricity

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