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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: date · field · tube · bulb · wave · fan · lie · can

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. tube — a container
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. can — a tin
  6. tube — the underground
  7. lie — to recline
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. can — to be able to
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. can — a tin
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. bulb — for light
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. bulb — for light
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. field — a subject
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. field — for sport
  24. date — the fruit

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