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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 want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. present — a gift
  3. bear — the animal
  4. season — in sport
  5. face — to confront
  6. degree — an amount
  7. present — there
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. season — of the year
  11. face — to point toward
  12. hand — in cards
  13. mate — a friend
  14. hand — help
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. present — the time now
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. mate — a partner
  19. degree — from a university
  20. face — part of the head
  21. mate — to breed
  22. bear — the animal
  23. tube — the underground
  24. degree — temperature

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