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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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. degree — temperature
  3. content — the amount
  4. branch — a division
  5. chair — a leader
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. season — in sport
  8. cap — a lid
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. march — the month
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. march — the month
  13. season — of the year
  14. tear — from crying
  15. degree — from a university
  16. march — music
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. cap — of ice
  19. degree — an amount
  20. tear — to rip
  21. cap — a hat
  22. tear — from crying
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. content — happy

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