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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: club · cap · root · tube · bore · face · mine · date

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. face — to confront
  4. cap — a lid
  5. cap — a hat
  6. date — the fruit
  7. club — for golf
  8. face — part of the head
  9. tube — a container
  10. mine — for digging
  11. bore — to drill
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. root — of a word
  14. face — to point toward
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. bore — to tire
  17. root — of a plant
  18. cap — of ice
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. club — a group
  21. tube — the underground
  22. root — the cause
  23. club — for dancing
  24. tube — in a tire

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