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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: court · land · lean · tube · band · season · object · arm

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. tube — the underground
  3. court — of a king
  4. land — to come down
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. band — a ring
  7. court — of law
  8. lean — to bend
  9. object — an aim
  10. tube — a container
  11. object — a thing
  12. object — to protest
  13. land — a country
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. land — ground
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. lean — thin
  18. season — of the year
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. court — for sport
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. band — a music group
  23. season — in sport
  24. season — to add flavour

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