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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: chest · lie · mouse · hide · board · tube · bank · cold

  1. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — for a computer
  2. tube — the underground
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. chest — of your body
  6. board — to get on
  7. bank — for money
  8. cold — not warm
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. chest — of your body
  15. tube — a container
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. bank — of a river
  18. cold — an illness
  19. bank — for money
  20. lie — to recline
  21. chest — a box
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. board — a committee
  24. mouse — the animal

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