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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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. My mare is ________________ in color.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. branch — a division
  3. wound — an injury
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. face — part of the head
  7. firm — steady
  8. degree — temperature
  9. face — to point toward
  10. face — to confront
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. wound — an injury
  13. degree — from a university
  14. sharp — clever
  15. capital — money
  16. firm — a company
  17. degree — an amount
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. bay — a part of the sea
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. capital — a city
  24. bay — a horse colour

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