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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: firm · bulb · tube · rush · bark · face · mate · last

  1. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. firm — decided
  4. tube — a container
  5. face — to point toward
  6. bulb — for light
  7. rush — hurry
  8. face — part of the head
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. last — finally
  11. bark — to shout
  12. firm — a company
  13. bulb — for light
  14. mate — to breed
  15. last — final
  16. mate — a friend
  17. last — to go on
  18. tube — the underground
  19. face — to confront
  20. mate — a partner
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. firm — steady
  24. rush — a thrill

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