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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: wound · roll · coach · sharp · pitcher · tube · temple · face

  1. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. tube — the underground
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. roll — a cake
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. roll — a list
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. wound — an injury
  16. wound — an injury
  17. face — part of the head
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. face — to confront
  20. sharp — clever
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. face — to point toward
  24. roll — on a roll

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