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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: shower · sharp · trunk · ground · plane · mark · stock · tube

  1. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. mark — a grade
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. ground — the earth
  6. mark — a trace
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. shower — to wash
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. tube — a container
  14. stock — goods
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. ground — a position
  17. sharp — clever
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. stock — shares
  20. ground — crushed
  21. shower — rain
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. plane — a tool

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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