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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.

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: mine · band · stand · tube · hide · mate · wax · land

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. mate — a friend
  3. tube — a container
  4. land — to come down
  5. mate — a partner
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. band — a ring
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. tube — the underground
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. mate — to breed
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. mine — for digging
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. stand — to bear
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. band — a music group
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. land — a country
  22. wax — to grow
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. stand — on your feet

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