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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 120 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 · face · kid · pit · tube · bay · plane · mine

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. mine — for digging
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. pit — in a race
  7. face — to confront
  8. pit — a hole
  9. spring — a coil
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. face — to point toward
  12. spring — of water
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. kid — child
  15. tube — a container
  16. face — part of the head
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. spring — the season
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. kid — to tease
  23. plane — a tool
  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