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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: shower · stick · tube · fall · cue · arm · temple · capital

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. cue — a hint
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. tube — a container
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. cue — a signal
  7. fall — to drop
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. capital — money
  14. fall — the season
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. shower — rain
  17. cue — for pool
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. tube — the underground
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. capital — a city
  22. fall — to drop
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. shower — to wash

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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