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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. field — for sport
  3. capital — money
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. degree — an amount
  7. wind — moving air
  8. rush — hurry
  9. field — farmland
  10. branch — a division
  11. field — a subject
  12. pass — a permit
  13. degree — from a university
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. capital — a city
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. degree — temperature
  24. wind — to turn a key

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