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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: row · lean · tube · band · safe · hand · wound · file

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. lean — to bend
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. wound — an injury
  7. file — a line of people
  8. tube — the underground
  9. row — to paddle
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. file — a tool
  12. lean — thin
  13. safe — a strongbox
  14. file — a document
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. tube — a container
  19. row — a line
  20. hand — in cards
  21. hand — help
  22. band — a music group
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. wound — an injury

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