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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: season · band · clip · tube · row · present · face · wave

  1. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. present — the time now
  3. face — to confront
  4. clip — to cut
  5. face — part of the head
  6. clip — for paper
  7. row — a line
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. season — in sport
  10. band — a ring
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. clip — a video
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. present — there
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. band — a music group
  18. tube — the underground
  19. row — to paddle
  20. season — of the year
  21. tube — a container
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. present — a gift

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