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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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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: chest · band · pitch · tube · plane · face · toast · bore

  1. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. face — to confront
  3. toast — the most admired
  4. chest — of your body
  5. plane — a tool
  6. face — part of the head
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. bore — to drill
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. face — to point toward
  12. band — a music group
  13. band — a ring
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. pitch — completely
  16. tube — a container
  17. bore — to tire
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. chest — a box
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. chest — of your body
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. tube — the underground
  24. toast — bread

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