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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: wound · perch · bulb · tube · stick · nail · branch · land

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. branch — a division
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. wound — an injury
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. tube — a container
  8. bulb — for light
  9. tube — the underground
  10. bulb — for light
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. perch — the fish
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. land — a country
  20. land — ground
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. wound — an injury
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. land — to come down

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