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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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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. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. stem — to come from
  3. net — for catching
  4. degree — from a university
  5. degree — temperature
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. present — the time now
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. degree — an amount
  10. branch — a division
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. net — in sport
  13. pound — a weight
  14. spring — of water
  15. rule — government
  16. spring — a coil
  17. rule — a law
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. present — there
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. present — a gift
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. net — after costs
  24. spring — the season

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