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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 116 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. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. degree — from a university
  4. bank — for money
  5. degree — temperature
  6. bank — of a river
  7. tube — the underground
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. tube — a container
  10. field — farmland
  11. bank — for money
  12. pitch — completely
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. cell — in biology
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. cell — a phone
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. field — a subject
  20. stem — to come from
  21. degree — an amount
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. field — for sport

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