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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.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. net — for catching
  4. tube — a container
  5. pop — to visit
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. mate — a partner
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. mate — to breed
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. net — after costs
  12. tube — the underground
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. mine — for digging
  16. stock — goods
  17. stock — shares
  18. mate — a friend
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. pop — music
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. pop — soda
  23. net — in sport
  24. nail — on a finger

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