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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 124 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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468
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: tube · net · mouse · wind · cell · scale · land · craft

  1. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. scale — in music
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. net — after costs
  6. land — a country
  7. wind — moving air
  8. net — for catching
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. land — to come down
  11. craft — a skill
  12. craft — boats
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. wind — moving air
  15. tube — a container
  16. scale — size or range
  17. net — in sport
  18. cell — a phone
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. cell — in biology
  22. land — ground
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. mouse — the animal

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