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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. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. object — an aim
  3. court — for sport
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. wax — to grow
  7. court — of a king
  8. face — part of the head
  9. face — to confront
  10. root — of a word
  11. object — to protest
  12. degree — temperature
  13. chip — to eat
  14. root — of a plant
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. object — a thing
  17. chip — for betting
  18. court — of law
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. degree — an amount
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. degree — from a university
  23. face — to point toward
  24. root — the cause

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