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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: bulb · mouse · branch · straw · tube · hide · wind · race

  1. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. tube — a container
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. race — the arms race
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. race — humankind
  9. race — a contest
  10. wind — moving air
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. branch — a division
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. wind — moving air
  17. bulb — for light
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. bulb — for light
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. tube — the underground
  24. branch — of a bank

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