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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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. When will it ________________ you to start?
  10. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. net — in sport
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. tube — the underground
  5. net — after costs
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. band — a music group
  8. band — a ring
  9. suit — to fit
  10. suit — clothes
  11. spring — a coil
  12. net — for catching
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. suit — in cards
  17. vault — a safe
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. spring — of water
  21. tube — a container
  22. wound — an injury
  23. kick — in football
  24. wound — an injury

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