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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: stem · tube · bowl · season · key · date · clip · bank

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. stem — to come from
  3. bank — for money
  4. clip — for paper
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. key — for a lock
  7. season — in sport
  8. key — the most important part
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. tube — the underground
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. clip — a video
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. bank — of a river
  15. date — the fruit
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. bank — for money
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. season — of the year
  21. clip — to cut
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. key — in music
  24. tube — a container

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