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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: mark · spring · tube · face · nail · perch · capital · wind

  1. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. wind — moving air
  3. spring — of water
  4. spring — a coil
  5. face — part of the head
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. face — to confront
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. mark — a trace
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. face — to point toward
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. perch — the fish
  17. mark — a grade
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. wind — moving air
  20. tube — a container
  21. capital — money
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. capital — a city
  24. spring — the season

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