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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: tube · band · rush · tear · arm · bound · mate · net

  1. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. tube — the underground
  3. net — for catching
  4. rush — hurry
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. mate — to breed
  8. tear — from crying
  9. net — in sport
  10. tube — a container
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. mate — a friend
  14. tear — to rip
  15. bound — obliged
  16. tear — from crying
  17. mate — a partner
  18. band — a music group
  19. net — after costs
  20. bound — certain
  21. band — a ring
  22. bound — tied together
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. rush — a thrill

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