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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: cue · cold · tube · bowl · present · object · bark · temple

  1. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. object — a thing
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. present — the time now
  5. present — there
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. object — an aim
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. tube — a container
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. cold — an illness
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. cue — a hint
  18. tube — the underground
  19. cue — for pool
  20. present — a gift
  21. bark — to shout
  22. cue — a signal
  23. cold — not warm
  24. tube — in a tire

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