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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. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. face — to point toward
  3. rush — hurry
  4. degree — from a university
  5. march — the month
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. face — to confront
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. face — part of the head
  10. board — to get on
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. march — the month
  13. last — final
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. degree — temperature
  16. last — finally
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. march — music
  20. last — to go on
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. degree — an amount
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. board — a committee

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