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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. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. current — of water
  3. cold — an illness
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. current — electric
  7. lie — to recline
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. chip — for betting
  12. branch — a division
  13. degree — temperature
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. current — happening now
  18. degree — from a university
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. degree — an amount
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. chip — to eat
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. cold — not warm

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