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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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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: march · tube · tear · coach · toast · band · rule · bank

  1. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. band — a music group
  3. tear — to rip
  4. march — the month
  5. rule — government
  6. march — the month
  7. rule — a law
  8. tube — a container
  9. tear — from crying
  10. march — music
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. tear — from crying
  14. toast — bread
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. band — a ring
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. bank — for money
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. bank — for money
  24. bank — of a river

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