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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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. tube — a container
  4. tube — the underground
  5. firm — decided
  6. firm — a company
  7. cold — an illness
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. wake — a trail
  11. firm — steady
  12. rush — hurry
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. degree — an amount
  16. degree — from a university
  17. cold — not warm
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. hand — in cards
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. hand — help
  22. degree — temperature
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. wake — before a funeral

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