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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. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. degree — temperature
  3. pop — to visit
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. rush — hurry
  7. branch — a division
  8. last — final
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. pop — music
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. degree — an amount
  16. degree — from a university
  17. last — finally
  18. pop — soda
  19. bat — the animal
  20. stock — goods
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. stock — shares
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. last — to go on

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