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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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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: file · calf · tube · can · chip · spring · degree · stand

  1. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. spring — the season
  3. degree — an amount
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. chip — for betting
  6. degree — temperature
  7. file — a line of people
  8. degree — from a university
  9. spring — of water
  10. can — to be able to
  11. spring — a coil
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. tube — the underground
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. can — a tin
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. chip — to eat
  21. file — a tool
  22. tube — a container
  23. file — a document
  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