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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: face · fall · plane · tube · game · land · last · bowl

  1. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. land — to come down
  4. last — finally
  5. land — ground
  6. fall — to drop
  7. face — part of the head
  8. fall — to drop
  9. land — a country
  10. last — final
  11. game — wild animals
  12. plane — a tool
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. face — to confront
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. tube — the underground
  21. tube — a container
  22. last — to go on
  23. face — to point toward
  24. game — a match

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