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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: cabinet · rest · degree · tear · bear · plane · spell · branch

  1. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. rest — a break
  3. bear — the animal
  4. degree — temperature
  5. tear — from crying
  6. plane — a tool
  7. tear — from crying
  8. spell — a short time
  9. degree — an amount
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. bear — the animal
  12. spell — letters
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. branch — a division
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. spell — magic
  17. degree — from a university
  18. rest — what's left
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. rest — what's left
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. tear — to rip
  24. cabinet — ministers

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