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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. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. When was this ________________ built?
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. degree — an amount
  3. bound — tied together
  4. bound — obliged
  5. degree — temperature
  6. pop — soda
  7. pop — music
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. capital — a city
  12. bound — certain
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. capital — money
  15. pop — to visit
  16. wind — moving air
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. wind — moving air
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. degree — from a university
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. pitch — completely
  24. wind — to turn a key

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