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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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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: spring · tube · bear · wake · clip · dip · bulb · bark

  1. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. bark — to shout
  3. spring — of water
  4. wake — a trail
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. tube — a container
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. clip — for paper
  10. bear — the animal
  11. spring — the season
  12. dip — to sink
  13. bulb — for light
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. clip — to cut
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. bear — the animal
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. bulb — for light
  22. tube — the underground
  23. spring — a coil
  24. bark — of a tree

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