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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: tube · band · game · hide · staff · tear · court · track

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. tube — the underground
  4. staff — employees
  5. track — a path
  6. tear — from crying
  7. tear — to rip
  8. band — a music group
  9. game — a match
  10. court — of law
  11. game — wild animals
  12. staff — employees
  13. tube — a container
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. court — for sport
  16. staff — a stick
  17. tear — from crying
  18. track — to keep track
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. band — a ring
  23. court — of a king
  24. track — a song

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