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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 · cue · roll · present · race · bulb · tube · stock

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. present — there
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. tube — the underground
  6. present — the time now
  7. roll — a list
  8. race — a contest
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. bulb — for light
  11. spring — of water
  12. present — a gift
  13. roll — a cake
  14. cue — for pool
  15. bulb — for light
  16. stock — shares
  17. race — humankind
  18. stock — goods
  19. cue — a hint
  20. cue — a signal
  21. race — the arms race
  22. spring — a coil
  23. spring — the season
  24. tube — a container

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