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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: wound · bowl · lash · bulb · fan · tube · net · drill

  1. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. bulb — for light
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. wound — an injury
  6. net — for catching
  7. drill — a practice
  8. tube — a container
  9. wound — an injury
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. tube — the underground
  13. net — after costs
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. bulb — for light
  17. net — in sport
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. drill — the tool
  24. drill — army training

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