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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: tear · tube · root · wake · game · wave · rash · cap

  1. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. tube — a container
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. cap — a lid
  6. game — a match
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. rash — a series
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. root — the cause
  14. tear — from crying
  15. root — of a plant
  16. tube — the underground
  17. cap — a hat
  18. wake — a trail
  19. rash — hasty
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. cap — of ice
  22. tear — from crying
  23. root — of a word
  24. tear — to rip

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