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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 116 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. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. degree — an amount
  3. rest — what's left
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. rest — what's left
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. rule — government
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. season — in sport
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. degree — from a university
  15. kid — to tease
  16. branch — a division
  17. rest — a break
  18. degree — temperature
  19. kid — child
  20. season — of the year
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. rule — a law
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. leaves — lets stay

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