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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. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. key — the most important part
  3. bat — the animal
  4. degree — an amount
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. game — a match
  8. key — in music
  9. hand — help
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. lean — thin
  12. game — wild animals
  13. degree — temperature
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. branch — a division
  16. degree — from a university
  17. key — for a lock
  18. lean — to bend
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. hand — in cards
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. game — a kind of play

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