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

Word bank: present · cold · kid · staff · saw · tube · rule · branch

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. staff — a stick
  3. present — there
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. tube — a container
  6. staff — employees
  7. kid — to tease
  8. saw — the tool
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. staff — employees
  11. tube — the underground
  12. present — the time now
  13. branch — a division
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. present — a gift
  16. rule — government
  17. saw — the tool
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. cold — an illness
  20. kid — child
  21. rule — a law
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. cold — not warm

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