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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: track · stand · wave · tube · game · fall · pop · hand

  1. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. hand — help
  5. hand — in cards
  6. tube — the underground
  7. fall — to drop
  8. fall — the season
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. pop — music
  11. pop — soda
  12. stand — to bear
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. game — a match
  15. pop — to visit
  16. track — a path
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. game — wild animals
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. track — to keep track
  21. track — a song
  22. fall — to drop
  23. tube — a container
  24. stand — for spectators

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