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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: bark · foot · date · nail · tube · bass · squash · spring

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. tube — a container
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. date — the fruit
  7. tube — the underground
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. squash — the sport
  11. spring — the season
  12. squash — to crush
  13. bark — to shout
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. spring — of water
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. bass — the fish
  20. spring — a coil
  21. bass — low music
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. foot — a measure

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