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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. degree — temperature
  4. chip — to eat
  5. craft — a skill
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. snap — to click
  10. chip — for betting
  11. rash — hasty
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. rash — a series
  14. craft — boats
  15. capital — a city
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. spell — a short time
  18. degree — an amount
  19. spell — letters
  20. capital — money
  21. spell — magic
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. branch — a division

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