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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: trunk · bore · tube · firm · capital · mate · pitcher · mine

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. firm — steady
  3. mate — a partner
  4. mate — to breed
  5. tube — the underground
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. firm — decided
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. bore — to drill
  12. tube — a container
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. bore — to tire
  15. mine — for digging
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. firm — a company
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. capital — a city
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. mate — a friend

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