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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: bass · rest · bear · mate · file · charge · degree · pitcher

  1. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. rest — what's left
  3. bass — the fish
  4. file — a tool
  5. rest — a break
  6. rest — what's left
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. charge — electricity
  9. bear — the animal
  10. charge — a price
  11. mate — to breed
  12. file — a document
  13. degree — from a university
  14. mate — a friend
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. mate — a partner
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. degree — an amount
  20. file — a line of people
  21. charge — in control
  22. degree — temperature
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. bear — the animal

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