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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. foot — the bottom
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. foot — a measure
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. branch — a division
  8. chest — of your body
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. chest — of your body
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. race — humankind
  14. chest — a box
  15. degree — an amount
  16. degree — from a university
  17. pit — in a race
  18. race — a contest
  19. race — the arms race
  20. pass — a permit
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. band — a music group
  23. pit — a hole
  24. degree — temperature

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