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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. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. degree — from a university
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. degree — an amount
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. chip — for betting
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. degree — temperature
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. chip — to eat
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. sharp — clever
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. bank — for money
  16. ruler — a monarch
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. squash — to crush
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. squash — the sport
  21. branch — a division
  22. bank — of a river
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. branch — of a bank

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