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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'll be taking the ________________.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. tube — a container
  3. hand — in cards
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. press — a publisher
  7. hand — help
  8. mine — for digging
  9. bound — certain
  10. bound — tied together
  11. press — to push
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. press — newspapers
  14. bound — obliged
  15. band — a ring
  16. degree — an amount
  17. band — a music group
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. degree — temperature
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. vault — a safe
  24. degree — from a university

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