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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 116 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. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

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

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