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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 · pound · trunk · net · firm · tube · straw · press

  1. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. net — in sport
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. firm — steady
  6. tube — a container
  7. spring — of water
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. net — for catching
  10. press — to push
  11. net — after costs
  12. firm — a company
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. tube — the underground
  16. press — a publisher
  17. pound — a weight
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. spring — the season
  20. firm — decided
  21. spring — a coil
  22. press — newspapers
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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