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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 need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. bat — the animal
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. spring — the season
  5. staff — employees
  6. tube — the underground
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. staff — a stick
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. tube — a container
  11. spring — a coil
  12. wound — an injury
  13. press — a publisher
  14. spring — of water
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. bank — for money
  17. press — newspapers
  18. vault — a safe
  19. wound — an injury
  20. press — to push
  21. bank — of a river
  22. bank — for money
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. staff — employees

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