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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 university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. bear — the animal
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. field — farmland
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. ruler — a monarch
  7. prune — to trim
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. degree — temperature
  12. land — a country
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. prune — to trim
  17. degree — an amount
  18. land — ground
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. land — to come down
  21. field — a subject
  22. bear — the animal
  23. branch — a division
  24. field — for sport

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