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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. tube — a container
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. net — in sport
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. net — for catching
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. bulb — for light
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. snap — to click
  16. lie — to recline
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. tube — the underground
  19. bulb — for light
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. net — after costs
  24. trunk — of a car

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