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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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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: bulb · patient · cold · stick · tear · degree · stand · tube

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  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. cold — the Cold War
  2. degree — temperature
  3. stand — to bear
  4. bulb — for light
  5. tear — to rip
  6. stand — on your feet
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. bulb — for light
  12. degree — from a university
  13. cold — not warm
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. cold — an illness
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. tube — a container
  20. tube — the underground
  21. tear — from crying
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. tear — from crying
  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