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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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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: fan · rest · plane · can · hand · pitch · bass · degree

  1. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. degree — an amount
  3. pitch — completely
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. rest — a break
  6. rest — what's left
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. can — to be able to
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. bass — low music
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. plane — a tool
  14. degree — temperature
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. rest — what's left
  17. can — a tin
  18. hand — help
  19. degree — from a university
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. hand — in cards
  24. bass — the fish

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