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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · branch · game · cabinet · degree · spring · hide · leaves

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. branch — a division
  4. tube — a container
  5. game — wild animals
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. game — a match
  8. spring — the season
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. spring — a coil
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. degree — an amount
  15. spring — of water
  16. degree — temperature
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. degree — from a university
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. tube — the underground
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. cabinet — ministers

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