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

Word bank: foot · bowl · degree · branch · rest · stick · tear · capital

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. rest — a break
  6. tear — to rip
  7. capital — a city
  8. tear — from crying
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. degree — an amount
  12. branch — a division
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. degree — temperature
  16. degree — from a university
  17. foot — a measure
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. rest — what's left
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. tear — from crying
  23. rest — what's left
  24. capital — a big letter

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