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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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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. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. degree — from a university
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. pop — music
  6. present — there
  7. present — the time now
  8. present — a gift
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. degree — temperature
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. tube — a container
  15. fall — to drop
  16. fall — to drop
  17. tube — the underground
  18. fall — the season
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. pop — soda
  21. pop — to visit
  22. degree — an amount
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. hide — to keep secret

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