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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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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: mug · prune · tear · hand · tube · scale · key · ground

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. tear — from crying
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. tear — to rip
  6. mug — to rob
  7. tube — the underground
  8. scale — size or range
  9. ground — the earth
  10. key — for a lock
  11. mug — a face
  12. tear — from crying
  13. hand — in cards
  14. scale — in music
  15. mug — a cup
  16. key — the most important part
  17. hand — help
  18. prune — to trim
  19. key — in music
  20. tube — a container
  21. ground — crushed
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. ground — a position
  24. prune — to trim

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