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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: patient · bound · content · net · cold · stand · tube · bass

  1. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  4. I can't ________________ this cold.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. content — the amount
  3. stand — for spectators
  4. stand — to bear
  5. bass — the fish
  6. net — after costs
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. cold — not warm
  9. bound — tied together
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. net — in sport
  13. bound — obliged
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. tube — a container
  16. content — happy
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. bound — certain
  20. net — for catching
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. bass — low music
  23. tube — the underground
  24. cold — an illness

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