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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: spell · band · cold · kick · tube · tear · safe · mug

  1. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. tear — from crying
  5. tear — to rip
  6. cold — not warm
  7. band — a music group
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. spell — letters
  10. band — a ring
  11. cold — an illness
  12. spell — a short time
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. tube — the underground
  15. spell — magic
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. tear — from crying
  18. mug — to rob
  19. mug — a cup
  20. kick — in football
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. tube — a container
  24. mug — a face

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