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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 116 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
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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: cabinet · tear · coach · scale · bat · tube · degree · chair

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. degree — temperature
  3. tube — the underground
  4. scale — in music
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. scale — size or range
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. bat — the animal
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. tube — a container
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. tear — from crying
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. degree — an amount
  22. tear — from crying
  23. chair — a leader
  24. degree — from a university

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