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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 120 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: sharp · temple · shower · chip · saw · bark · branch · capital

  1. When was this ________________ built?
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. branch — a division
  3. shower — rain
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. shower — to wash
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. bark — to shout
  8. sharp — clever
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. saw — the tool
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. capital — money
  17. saw — the tool
  18. capital — a city
  19. chip — to eat
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. chip — for betting
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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