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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: cell · degree · tube · drill · craft · bear

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. bear — the animal
  3. degree — an amount
  4. cell — in biology
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. craft — boats
  8. cell — a phone
  9. drill — army training
  10. tube — a container
  11. tube — the underground
  12. craft — a skill
  13. drill — a practice
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. degree — temperature
  16. degree — from a university
  17. bear — the animal
  18. drill — the tool

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