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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 dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. stand — to bear
  4. game — a match
  5. cap — a hat
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. game — wild animals
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. season — of the year
  10. degree — an amount
  11. band — a music group
  12. cap — of ice
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. degree — temperature
  17. degree — from a university
  18. band — a ring
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. bark — to shout
  22. season — in sport
  23. cap — a lid
  24. game — a kind of play

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