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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He is an ace ________________.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. degree — from a university
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. pitch — completely
  6. chip — to eat
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. degree — temperature
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. content — the amount
  11. branch — a division
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. chip — for betting
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. degree — an amount
  17. content — happy
  18. chip — in a computer

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