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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
468
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: bear · tube · squash · cell · fan · degree · dip · scale

  1. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. degree — temperature
  4. squash — to crush
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. degree — an amount
  9. scale — size or range
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. degree — from a university
  12. cell — a phone
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. scale — in music
  15. cell — in biology
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. squash — the sport
  18. bear — the animal
  19. tube — a container
  20. bear — the animal
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. tube — the underground
  23. dip — to sink
  24. dip — to dunk

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