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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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. object — an aim
  4. branch — a division
  5. ground — a position
  6. degree — an amount
  7. content — the amount
  8. can — a tin
  9. toast — a drink to someone
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. can — a tin
  12. degree — temperature
  13. can — to be able to
  14. object — a thing
  15. toast — bread
  16. scale — in music
  17. toast — the most admired
  18. ground — the earth
  19. content — happy
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. degree — from a university
  22. ground — crushed
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. scale — size or range

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