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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: degree · tube · cold · bass · can · mate · fork · content

  1. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. tube — a container
  3. can — to be able to
  4. tube — the underground
  5. content — the amount
  6. mate — a friend
  7. bass — low music
  8. can — a tin
  9. cold — not warm
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. degree — an amount
  12. degree — temperature
  13. can — a tin
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. mate — a partner
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. cold — an illness
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. degree — from a university
  20. content — happy
  21. bass — the fish
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. fork — in a road
  24. mate — to breed

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