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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 120 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: cold · cabinet · snap · degree · safe · hide · charge · tube

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. degree — an amount
  3. cold — not warm
  4. degree — from a university
  5. safe — a strongbox
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. tube — the underground
  11. charge — a price
  12. charge — electricity
  13. snap — to click
  14. tube — a container
  15. degree — temperature
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. charge — in control
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. hide — animal skin

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