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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: tube · capital · rest · bark · degree · press

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. degree — temperature
  4. rest — a break
  5. degree — an amount
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. press — newspapers
  9. capital — money
  10. bark — to shout
  11. tube — a container
  12. degree — from a university
  13. rest — what's left
  14. press — a publisher
  15. capital — a city
  16. tube — the underground
  17. rest — what's left
  18. press — to push

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