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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'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. stock — goods
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. land — a country
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. bulb — for light
  11. mine — for digging
  12. rush — hurry
  13. stock — shares
  14. row — to paddle
  15. land — to come down
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. tube — a container
  18. row — a line
  19. tube — the underground
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. bulb — for light
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. bulb — of a plant

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