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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 want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. When will it ________________ you to start?
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. squash — the sport
  3. land — a country
  4. tube — the underground
  5. suit — in cards
  6. land — to come down
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. stock — goods
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. chip — to eat
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. suit — clothes
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. land — ground
  16. chip — for betting
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. branch — a division
  19. stock — shares
  20. suit — to fit
  21. squash — to crush
  22. bulb — for light
  23. bulb — for light
  24. bulb — of a plant

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