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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  21. When will it ________________ you to start?
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. last — final
  3. swing — music
  4. cell — a phone
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. tear — to rip
  7. last — to go on
  8. club — for dancing
  9. tear — from crying
  10. suit — in cards
  11. last — finally
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. degree — an amount
  14. club — for golf
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. cell — in biology
  17. degree — from a university
  18. club — a group
  19. swing — to play on
  20. suit — clothes
  21. suit — to fit
  22. swing — in golf
  23. degree — temperature
  24. tear — from crying

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