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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: march · rule · suit · mouse · fall · tube · band · race

  1. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. When will it ________________ you to start?
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. race — humankind
  3. rule — a law
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. suit — in cards
  6. race — the arms race
  7. suit — to fit
  8. tube — a container
  9. band — a music group
  10. march — the month
  11. suit — clothes
  12. fall — to drop
  13. march — music
  14. fall — to drop
  15. band — a ring
  16. fall — the season
  17. race — a contest
  18. march — the month
  19. tube — the underground
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. rule — government
  24. band — a rubber band

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