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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: mine · rash · tube · bound · dip · plane · tear · wake

  1. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. bound — certain
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. rash — hasty
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. tear — to rip
  12. tube — the underground
  13. tear — from crying
  14. tube — a container
  15. bound — tied together
  16. dip — to sink
  17. bound — obliged
  18. plane — a tool
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. tear — from crying
  21. wake — a trail
  22. rash — a series
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. mine — for digging

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