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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: content · branch · game · jam · vault · degree · face · spell

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. spell — letters
  3. branch — a division
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. spell — magic
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. jam — to spread on bread
  8. degree — temperature
  9. face — to point toward
  10. face — part of the head
  11. spell — a short time
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. face — to confront
  14. content — happy
  15. jam — a tight spot
  16. content — the amount
  17. jam — in traffic
  18. vault — a safe
  19. game — a match
  20. game — wild animals
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. degree — an amount
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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