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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 · wake · racket · tube · bay · roll · fall · degree

  1. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  6. We're on a ________________ here.
  7. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. My mare is ________________ in color.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. fall — to drop
  3. degree — from a university
  4. degree — an amount
  5. roll — a list
  6. roll — on a roll
  7. bay — a part of the sea
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. chest — of your body
  10. wake — a trail
  11. roll — a cake
  12. tube — the underground
  13. degree — temperature
  14. chest — a box
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. fall — to drop
  20. fall — the season
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. bay — a horse colour
  23. chest — of your body
  24. racket — for tennis

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