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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: degree · branch · face · cell · wave · present

  1. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — a sudden rise
  2. present — there
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. degree — temperature
  5. face — to confront
  6. branch — a division
  7. degree — from a university
  8. face — part of the head
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. degree — an amount
  12. face — to point toward
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. cell — in biology
  15. present — the time now
  16. present — a gift
  17. cell — a phone
  18. wave — with your hand

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