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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: branch · calf · mate · degree · date · tube · sharp · capital

  1. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. degree — an amount
  4. tube — the underground
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. mate — a partner
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. sharp — clever
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. degree — from a university
  14. tube — a container
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. capital — a city
  17. mate — a friend
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. degree — temperature
  20. date — the fruit
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. mate — to breed
  24. capital — money

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