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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. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. degree — temperature
  4. ball — a great time
  5. wound — an injury
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. degree — from a university
  9. chip — for betting
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. bank — for money
  13. ball — a dance
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. chip — to eat
  16. content — the amount
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. degree — an amount
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. bank — of a river
  21. content — happy
  22. branch — a division
  23. wound — an injury
  24. racket — for tennis

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