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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: date · bass · pop · bulb · fall · mine · tube · wound

  1. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. bulb — for light
  4. wound — an injury
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. fall — the season
  8. tube — a container
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. bass — low music
  11. pop — soda
  12. wound — an injury
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. fall — to drop
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. tube — the underground
  17. fall — to drop
  18. date — the fruit
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. bulb — for light
  21. mine — for digging
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. pop — music
  24. pop — to visit

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