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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
468
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: snap · capital · bulb · drill · toast · land · tube · fan

  1. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. tube — the underground
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. capital — money
  5. land — ground
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. drill — a practice
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. snap — to click
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. toast — bread
  13. drill — the tool
  14. toast — a drink to someone
  15. capital — a city
  16. toast — the most admired
  17. land — to come down
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. drill — army training
  21. bulb — for light
  22. bulb — for light
  23. tube — a container
  24. land — a country

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