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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: mate · can · lean · tube · fork · net · game · bass

  1. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. can — a tin
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. mate — a partner
  6. lean — to bend
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. net — after costs
  10. mate — a friend
  11. tube — a container
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. game — a match
  14. can — a tin
  15. bass — the fish
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. fork — in a road
  18. net — in sport
  19. can — to be able to
  20. tube — the underground
  21. mate — to breed
  22. lean — thin
  23. net — for catching
  24. game — wild animals

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