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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: tube · chest · bulb · mouse · hide · branch · mate · chair

  1. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  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. hide — animal skin
  2. chair — a leader
  3. tube — the underground
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. branch — a division
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. mate — a partner
  8. chest — a box
  9. bulb — for light
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. mate — to breed
  12. chest — of your body
  13. mate — a friend
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. chest — of your body
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. bulb — for light
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. tube — a container
  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