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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: capital · tube · prune · key · bass · mine · march · pass

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. pass — a permit
  3. march — the month
  4. capital — a city
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. prune — to trim
  7. tube — a container
  8. pass — to spend time
  9. mine — for digging
  10. tube — the underground
  11. key — in music
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. capital — money
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. bass — the fish
  17. march — music
  18. key — for a lock
  19. pass — to succeed
  20. key — the most important part
  21. bass — low music
  22. prune — to trim
  23. march — the month
  24. mine — an explosive

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