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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 120 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 ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. race — a contest
  3. perch — the fish
  4. degree — from a university
  5. branch — a division
  6. degree — temperature
  7. track — a path
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. track — a song
  10. ground — a position
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. land — to come down
  14. land — a country
  15. degree — an amount
  16. track — to keep track
  17. stock — goods
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. stock — shares
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. land — ground
  22. race — the arms race
  23. ground — crushed
  24. race — humankind

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