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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 120 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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. season — in sport
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. wind — moving air
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. mark — a grade
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. mark — a trace
  11. game — wild animals
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. branch — a division
  14. degree — an amount
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. degree — temperature
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. wind — moving air
  19. degree — from a university
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. foot — a measure
  22. game — a match
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. foot — the bottom

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