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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: drill · last · fan · net · stock · shower · cabinet · tube

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  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. drill — army training
  3. net — after costs
  4. shower — to wash
  5. drill — a practice
  6. last — to go on
  7. tube — a container
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. stock — shares
  11. net — for catching
  12. net — in sport
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. shower — rain
  16. last — final
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. stock — goods
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. last — finally
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. drill — the tool
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. tube — the underground

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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