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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. mate — a partner
  5. band — a music group
  6. stock — shares
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. mate — a friend
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. degree — temperature
  12. branch — a division
  13. degree — an amount
  14. degree — from a university
  15. can — to be able to
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. can — a tin
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. sharp — clever
  20. can — a tin
  21. wake — a trail
  22. mate — to breed
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. stock — goods

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