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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. file — a tool
  6. capital — money
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. file — a document
  10. capital — a city
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. branch — a division
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. game — wild animals
  15. degree — an amount
  16. ruler — a monarch
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. mark — a trace
  19. file — a line of people
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. game — a match
  22. mark — a grade
  23. degree — from a university
  24. trunk — of a car

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