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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 120 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
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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: cap · net · chair · present · tube · degree · can · chest

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. degree — temperature
  3. cap — of ice
  4. can — to be able to
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. cap — a hat
  7. chest — a box
  8. net — after costs
  9. net — in sport
  10. net — for catching
  11. degree — from a university
  12. chest — of your body
  13. chest — of your body
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. tube — the underground
  16. can — a tin
  17. cap — a lid
  18. tube — a container
  19. present — the time now
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. chair — a leader
  22. present — there
  23. can — a tin
  24. degree — an amount

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