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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. stock — shares
  3. degree — from a university
  4. face — to confront
  5. tube — the underground
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. row — to paddle
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. bass — low music
  10. tube — a container
  11. degree — an amount
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. bulb — for light
  14. face — to point toward
  15. degree — temperature
  16. row — a line
  17. face — part of the head
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. stock — goods
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. bulb — for light
  23. bass — the fish
  24. bass — the instrument

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