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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: spring · bark · tube · rush · club · object · rash · can

  1. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. rush — hurry
  3. tube — the underground
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. object — to protest
  8. object — a thing
  9. object — an aim
  10. rash — hasty
  11. club — for dancing
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. spring — a coil
  14. club — for golf
  15. spring — of water
  16. spring — the season
  17. can — a tin
  18. can — to be able to
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. bark — to shout
  21. rash — a series
  22. club — a group
  23. tube — a container
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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