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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: tube · spring · track · snap · scale · mine · bear · fork

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  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. spring — the season
  3. bear — the animal
  4. snap — to click
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. spring — of water
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. track — to keep track
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. scale — in music
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. mine — for digging
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. bear — the animal
  16. fork — in a road
  17. track — a path
  18. tube — the underground
  19. spring — a coil
  20. scale — size or range
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. track — a song
  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