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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. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. tube — a container
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. rock — music
  6. march — the month
  7. press — to push
  8. march — music
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. tear — to rip
  11. tear — from crying
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. vault — a safe
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. rock — a stone
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. tear — from crying
  19. dip — to sink
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. march — the month
  22. press — a publisher
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. press — newspapers

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