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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 need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. spring — of water
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. game — wild animals
  6. prune — to trim
  7. tube — the underground
  8. lean — to bend
  9. spring — a coil
  10. swing — music
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. lean — thin
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. prune — to trim
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. vault — a safe
  17. swing — to play on
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. spring — the season
  20. swing — in golf
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. tube — a container
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. game — a match

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