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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 116 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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. sharp — clever
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. scale — in music
  6. cold — not warm
  7. scale — size or range
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. cold — an illness
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. race — the arms race
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. deal — to handle
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. vault — a safe
  18. race — a contest
  19. dip — to sink
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. race — humankind
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. deal — a big deal

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