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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: bound · rest · jam · degree · deal · hide · branch · trunk

  1. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. bound — certain
  3. degree — from a university
  4. deal — to handle
  5. jam — a tight spot
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. jam — to spread on bread
  8. rest — a break
  9. degree — an amount
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. bound — obliged
  14. jam — in traffic
  15. bound — tied together
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. degree — temperature
  20. rest — what's left
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. rest — what's left
  23. branch — a division
  24. hide — to keep secret

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