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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 · lash · wave · kid · spring · file · face

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. kid — to tease
  3. board — to get on
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. face — to confront
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. file — a line of people
  9. file — a tool
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. kid — child
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. tube — the underground
  15. spring — of water
  16. spring — a coil
  17. file — a document
  18. board — a committee
  19. tube — a container
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. face — to point toward
  22. spring — the season
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. face — part of the head

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