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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 116 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: drill · mark · mine · bear · bulb · capital · tube · hand

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  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. hand — help
  2. bear — the animal
  3. bear — the animal
  4. tube — a container
  5. bulb — for light
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. drill — a practice
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. capital — a city
  11. mark — a trace
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. drill — army training
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. mark — a grade
  17. capital — money
  18. hand — in cards
  19. bulb — for light
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. drill — the tool
  22. tube — the underground
  23. mine — belonging to me
  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