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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 116 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. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. mark — a grade
  3. degree — an amount
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. kid — to tease
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. mark — a trace
  10. wake — a trail
  11. degree — temperature
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. saw — the tool
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. sharp — clever
  19. degree — from a university
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. branch — a division
  22. saw — the tool
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. kid — child

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