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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.

Words on the sheet
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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 · saw · bowl · land · squash · clip · degree

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. land — a country
  6. clip — a video
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. clip — to cut
  10. land — to come down
  11. squash — to crush
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. saw — the tool
  14. degree — an amount
  15. branch — a division
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. clip — for paper
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. degree — from a university
  20. saw — the tool
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. squash — the sport
  24. degree — temperature

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