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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. rest — a break
  4. degree — an amount
  5. rest — what's left
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. perch — the fish
  15. wind — moving air
  16. tube — the underground
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. wind — moving air
  19. degree — from a university
  20. degree — temperature
  21. rest — what's left
  22. tube — a container
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. branch — a division

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