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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 116 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: branch · rule · fork · drill · chip · degree · club · bat

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. degree — an amount
  3. rule — government
  4. rule — a law
  5. chip — to eat
  6. club — for golf
  7. drill — the tool
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. fork — in a road
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. chip — for betting
  13. drill — army training
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. club — a group
  17. degree — from a university
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. drill — a practice
  20. degree — temperature
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. branch — a division
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. club — for dancing

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