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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  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 — a container
  2. degree — temperature
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. kid — child
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. present — the time now
  7. cold — an illness
  8. tube — the underground
  9. kid — to tease
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. present — a gift
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. cold — not warm
  16. present — there
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. degree — an amount
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. tube — in a tire
  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