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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. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. track — to keep track
  3. track — a path
  4. march — music
  5. mate — a friend
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. degree — an amount
  8. wound — an injury
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. march — the month
  11. pitch — completely
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. wound — an injury
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. mate — to breed
  16. mate — a partner
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. track — a song
  19. march — the month
  20. degree — from a university
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. stock — goods
  23. degree — temperature
  24. stock — shares

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