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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. file — a document
  3. capital — a city
  4. cap — a hat
  5. degree — from a university
  6. branch — a division
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. degree — an amount
  9. degree — temperature
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. pass — a permit
  13. bark — to shout
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. file — a line of people
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. file — a tool
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. cap — a lid
  22. pass — to succeed
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. cap — of ice

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