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

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. fork — in a road
  3. stand — to bear
  4. spring — the season
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. wake — a trail
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. pop — music
  9. spring — of water
  10. tube — the underground
  11. pop — soda
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. tube — a container
  15. dip — to sink
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. bark — to shout
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. pop — to visit
  22. spring — a coil
  23. stand — on your feet
  24. fork — to eat with

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