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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: tube · fork · rock · dip · cap · bulb · cold · rash

  1. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. fork — in a road
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. cap — a lid
  7. cap — of ice
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. dip — to sink
  11. bulb — for light
  12. cold — not warm
  13. rash — a series
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. cold — an illness
  18. cap — a hat
  19. tube — the underground
  20. rash — hasty
  21. rock — a stone
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. bulb — for light
  24. tube — a container

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