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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 116 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: dip · staff · cold · tube · bass · spring · stand · content

  1. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — for spectators
  2. content — happy
  3. spring — a coil
  4. staff — a stick
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. tube — a container
  8. staff — employees
  9. tube — the underground
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. cold — an illness
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. dip — to sink
  16. spring — of water
  17. content — the amount
  18. bass — low music
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. bass — the fish
  21. cold — not warm
  22. staff — employees
  23. stand — to bear
  24. spring — the season

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