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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. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. wound — an injury
  3. tube — the underground
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. degree — from a university
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. degree — an amount
  8. tube — a container
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. file — a tool
  11. branch — a division
  12. squash — the sport
  13. degree — temperature
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. squash — to crush
  17. mark — a grade
  18. file — a line of people
  19. march — the month
  20. march — the month
  21. wound — an injury
  22. march — music
  23. file — a document
  24. mark — to pay attention

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