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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: date · bore · pit · chip · swing · ball · degree · branch

  1. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. swing — in golf
  5. date — the fruit
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. branch — a division
  8. degree — an amount
  9. chip — to eat
  10. ball — a great time
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. ball — a dance
  13. bore — to tire
  14. bore — to drill
  15. swing — to play on
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. swing — music
  18. chip — for betting
  19. degree — from a university
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. degree — temperature
  24. pit — in a race

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