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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 120 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: march · plane · pit · deal · track · chest · tube · cabinet

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. tube — a container
  8. chest — of your body
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. plane — a tool
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. tube — the underground
  13. chest — a box
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. track — a path
  16. track — a song
  17. pit — a hole
  18. track — to keep track
  19. march — the month
  20. pit — in a race
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. march — the month
  23. chest — of your body
  24. deal — to handle

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