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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: wind · board · tube · staff · chest · bear · craft · shower

  1. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. staff — employees
  4. bear — the animal
  5. shower — rain
  6. chest — of your body
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. chest — of your body
  9. wind — moving air
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. craft — a skill
  14. board — to get on
  15. staff — employees
  16. tube — the underground
  17. craft — boats
  18. chest — a box
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. board — a committee
  21. staff — a stick
  22. wind — moving air
  23. shower — to wash
  24. bear — the animal

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