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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: tube · board · cap · game · leaves · bank · scale · band

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. band — a music group
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. tube — a container
  5. board — a committee
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. bank — for money
  9. game — a match
  10. game — wild animals
  11. board — to get on
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. scale — size or range
  15. cap — a lid
  16. scale — in music
  17. bank — of a river
  18. cap — a hat
  19. tube — the underground
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. bank — for money
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. cap — of ice

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