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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: march · spring · tube · hide · temple · chip · rest · wind

  1. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. wind — moving air
  3. chip — to eat
  4. tube — a container
  5. march — music
  6. rest — what's left
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. rest — what's left
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. spring — the season
  12. spring — a coil
  13. tube — the underground
  14. spring — of water
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. wind — moving air
  20. march — the month
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. chip — for betting
  23. march — the month
  24. rest — a break

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