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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: tube · cue · cap · patient · swing · tear · face · sharp

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. cap — a hat
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. swing — music
  5. cap — a lid
  6. face — part of the head
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. tear — from crying
  10. tear — from crying
  11. sharp — clever
  12. cue — a signal
  13. face — to point toward
  14. cue — a hint
  15. tube — a container
  16. cue — for pool
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. tube — the underground
  20. swing — in golf
  21. cap — of ice
  22. swing — to play on
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. tear — to rip

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