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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: net · file · drill · fan · bay · degree · content · row

  1. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. drill — the tool
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. degree — an amount
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. net — after costs
  7. net — in sport
  8. file — a document
  9. drill — army training
  10. content — happy
  11. file — a tool
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. file — a line of people
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. row — a line
  16. degree — from a university
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. net — for catching
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. drill — a practice
  23. degree — temperature
  24. row — to paddle

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