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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.

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 · cold · bass · can · plane · patient · toast · sharp

  1. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. bass — low music
  4. toast — bread
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. cold — an illness
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. degree — temperature
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. can — a tin
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. sharp — clever
  16. toast — the most admired
  17. cold — not warm
  18. toast — a drink to someone
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. plane — a tool
  21. degree — from a university
  22. degree — an amount
  23. bass — the fish
  24. can — a tin

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