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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  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. wake — before a funeral
  2. tube — a container
  3. tube — the underground
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. spring — the season
  6. wake — a trail
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. chest — of your body
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. chest — of your body
  12. spring — a coil
  13. degree — an amount
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. degree — from a university
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. chest — a box
  20. spring — of water
  21. rush — hurry
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  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