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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: chest · degree · lie · chip · land · rule · branch · mark

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. mark — a trace
  3. chip — to eat
  4. land — ground
  5. chest — of your body
  6. rule — a law
  7. chest — a box
  8. chest — of your body
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. degree — an amount
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. mark — a grade
  13. lie — to recline
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. land — to come down
  16. land — a country
  17. degree — from a university
  18. rule — government
  19. chip — for betting
  20. branch — a division
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. chip — in a computer

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