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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: dip · net · wind · firm · chest · spring · stock · tube

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. firm — a company
  3. spring — the season
  4. wind — moving air
  5. wind — moving air
  6. spring — a coil
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. stock — shares
  9. chest — of your body
  10. firm — decided
  11. dip — to sink
  12. net — after costs
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. spring — of water
  15. tube — a container
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. net — in sport
  18. firm — steady
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. chest — a box
  21. net — for catching
  22. stock — goods
  23. chest — of your body
  24. tube — the underground

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