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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 120 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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. field — for sport
  4. cap — a hat
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. cap — a lid
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. cap — of ice
  9. bank — of a river
  10. present — a gift
  11. bank — for money
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. present — the time now
  14. tube — a container
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. kid — child
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. field — farmland
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. field — a subject
  21. tube — the underground
  22. bank — for money
  23. kid — to tease
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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