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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: craft · rest · mouse · mark · degree · safe · branch · court

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. court — for sport
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. safe — a strongbox
  7. rest — a break
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. branch — a division
  11. court — of a king
  12. rest — what's left
  13. mark — a grade
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. degree — temperature
  17. degree — from a university
  18. rest — what's left
  19. court — of law
  20. craft — a skill
  21. degree — an amount
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. mark — a trace

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