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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: branch · cold · toast · vault · hand · bulb · fan · tube

  1. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. cold — an illness
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. hand — in cards
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. toast — the most admired
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. hand — help
  12. toast — bread
  13. tube — the underground
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. vault — a safe
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. bulb — for light
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. branch — a division
  22. bulb — for light
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. cold — not warm

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