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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. net — after costs
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. spring — the season
  6. mine — for digging
  7. spring — of water
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. net — in sport
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. pound — a weight
  15. spring — a coil
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. tube — a container
  20. net — for catching
  21. rush — hurry
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. tube — the underground

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