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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'll be taking the ________________.
  2. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. field — farmland
  4. field — a subject
  5. bulb — for light
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. rush — hurry
  8. content — happy
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. tube — a container
  12. field — for sport
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. content — the amount
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. bulb — for light
  20. bark — to shout
  21. bulb — of a plant
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. mine — for digging

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