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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: bulb · degree · arm · trunk · pop · tear · tube · wake

  1. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. tube — a container
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. tear — to rip
  5. pop — music
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. pop — soda
  8. bulb — for light
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. degree — from a university
  11. bulb — for light
  12. wake — a trail
  13. degree — an amount
  14. degree — temperature
  15. tube — the underground
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. tear — from crying
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. tear — from crying
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. pop — to visit
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. bulb — of a plant

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