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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. track — to keep track
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. track — a path
  9. degree — from a university
  10. drill — army training
  11. branch — a division
  12. drill — the tool
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. track — a song
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. degree — an amount
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. degree — temperature
  21. drill — a practice
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. foot — a measure

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