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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. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. degree — from a university
  4. branch — a division
  5. pop — soda
  6. wound — an injury
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. degree — an amount
  11. can — to be able to
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. pop — to visit
  14. pop — music
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. wound — an injury
  17. degree — temperature
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. can — a tin
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. date — the fruit
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. branch — of a tree

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