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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: mug · march · band · clip · pitcher · tube · charge · root

  1. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. root — of a plant
  4. tube — the underground
  5. band — a ring
  6. tube — a container
  7. clip — a video
  8. charge — electricity
  9. clip — to cut
  10. march — the month
  11. root — the cause
  12. mug — to rob
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. march — music
  15. march — the month
  16. mug — a face
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. band — a music group
  19. mug — a cup
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. root — of a word
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. clip — for paper
  24. charge — in control

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