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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. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. fall — to drop
  4. degree — an amount
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. game — a match
  7. fall — the season
  8. bound — obliged
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. fall — to drop
  12. drill — the tool
  13. drill — a practice
  14. bound — tied together
  15. dip — to sink
  16. degree — temperature
  17. game — wild animals
  18. degree — from a university
  19. drill — army training
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. branch — a division
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. arm — a part of something

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