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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. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. field — farmland
  4. jam — a tight spot
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. jam — in traffic
  7. degree — temperature
  8. jam — to spread on bread
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. degree — from a university
  11. bass — the fish
  12. can — to be able to
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. field — a subject
  15. branch — a division
  16. bass — low music
  17. can — a tin
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. can — a tin
  20. perch — the fish
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. degree — an amount
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. field — for sport

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