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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: cap · can · face · straw · court · rest · kid · tube

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. can — a tin
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. can — a tin
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. court — of a king
  8. face — part of the head
  9. rest — what's left
  10. cap — of ice
  11. tube — a container
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. rest — what's left
  14. cap — a hat
  15. court — for sport
  16. cap — a lid
  17. rest — a break
  18. tube — the underground
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. court — of law
  21. can — to be able to
  22. kid — child
  23. face — to confront
  24. face — to point toward

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