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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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  23. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  24. He has no idea where the ________________ is.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. saw — the tool
  3. rule — a law
  4. rule — government
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. degree — an amount
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. degree — temperature
  10. degree — from a university
  11. shower — rain
  12. date — the fruit
  13. shower — to wash
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. stem — to come from
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. saw — the tool
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. safe — a strongbox

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