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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 · tube · band · snap · prune · spring · cue · content

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. spring — a coil
  4. cue — for pool
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. prune — to trim
  7. band — a music group
  8. march — the month
  9. tube — the underground
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. spring — the season
  12. march — the month
  13. prune — to trim
  14. tube — a container
  15. content — the amount
  16. cue — a hint
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. cue — a signal
  19. snap — to click
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. spring — of water
  23. band — a ring
  24. content — happy

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