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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: perch · branch · trunk · foot · degree · bass · swing · rule

  1. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. perch — the fish
  3. degree — an amount
  4. swing — music
  5. degree — temperature
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. swing — to play on
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. rule — government
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. bass — the fish
  13. rule — a law
  14. degree — from a university
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. branch — a division
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. swing — in golf
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. foot — a measure

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