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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: suit · date · capital · mine · degree · wake · branch · ruler

  1. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. When will it ________________ you to start?
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. suit — in cards
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. degree — an amount
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. degree — temperature
  10. degree — from a university
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. suit — to fit
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. suit — clothes
  17. capital — money
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. mine — for digging
  21. date — the fruit
  22. wake — a trail
  23. branch — a division
  24. capital — a city

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