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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: scale · patient · tube · shower · kid · mine · bulb · press

  1. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. press — newspapers
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. tube — a container
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. shower — to wash
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. kid — to tease
  11. scale — in music
  12. tube — the underground
  13. bulb — for light
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. press — a publisher
  17. mine — for digging
  18. shower — rain
  19. kid — child
  20. press — to push
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. bulb — for light
  23. scale — size or range
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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