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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. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. tube — the underground
  4. degree — from a university
  5. tube — a container
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. vault — a safe
  10. bat — the animal
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. degree — temperature
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. chair — a leader
  19. degree — an amount
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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