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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: hide · bound · game · wound · wake · mug · tube · bear

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. bear — the animal
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. mug — a cup
  5. bound — obliged
  6. mug — a face
  7. wake — a trail
  8. game — wild animals
  9. tube — a container
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. tube — the underground
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. mug — to rob
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. bear — the animal
  20. game — a match
  21. wound — an injury
  22. bound — certain
  23. bound — tied together
  24. wound — an injury

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