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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. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. key — for a lock
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. clip — a video
  6. clip — to cut
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. degree — an amount
  9. bear — the animal
  10. degree — from a university
  11. branch — a division
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. cell — in biology
  14. cell — a phone
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. degree — temperature
  17. clip — for paper
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. key — in music
  20. key — the most important part
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. deal — to handle
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. branch — of a bank

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