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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. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  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. dip — to dunk
  2. present — a gift
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. tube — the underground
  5. drill — the tool
  6. dip — to sink
  7. lie — to recline
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. present — there
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. cue — a hint
  13. drill — a practice
  14. drill — army training
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. tube — a container
  18. degree — from a university
  19. cue — a signal
  20. degree — an amount
  21. perch — the fish
  22. present — the time now
  23. cue — for pool
  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