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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. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. tube — a container
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. race — humankind
  5. tear — to rip
  6. tear — from crying
  7. race — a contest
  8. race — the arms race
  9. tube — the underground
  10. pit — a hole
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. chest — a box
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. degree — temperature
  17. chest — of your body
  18. degree — an amount
  19. chest — of your body
  20. tear — from crying
  21. ruler — a monarch
  22. pit — in a race
  23. degree — from a university
  24. ruler — for measuring

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