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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.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: cell · spring · scale · net · tube · trunk · last · fan

  1. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. cell — a phone
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. last — to go on
  6. scale — size or range
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. scale — in music
  9. net — for catching
  10. tube — a container
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. spring — a coil
  13. net — in sport
  14. spring — of water
  15. last — final
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. net — after costs
  21. spring — the season
  22. cell — in biology
  23. last — finally
  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