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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 need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. tube — a container
  3. bear — the animal
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. spring — a coil
  7. tube — the underground
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. spring — the season
  10. spring — of water
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. drill — the tool
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. drill — a practice
  16. drill — army training
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. cell — in biology
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. cell — a phone
  22. plane — a tool
  23. rush — hurry
  24. bear — the animal

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