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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: snap · rush · tube · spring · stand · net · content · tear

  1. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. spring — of water
  3. tear — from crying
  4. tear — to rip
  5. stand — to bear
  6. net — in sport
  7. tube — the underground
  8. rush — hurry
  9. content — the amount
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. net — for catching
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. content — happy
  15. tear — from crying
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. net — after costs
  18. tube — a container
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. spring — the season
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. spring — a coil
  23. snap — to click
  24. stand — for spectators

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