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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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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 · stock · content · degree · press · rule

  1. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. stock — shares
  4. degree — temperature
  5. degree — an amount
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. content — happy
  8. press — a publisher
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. content — the amount
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. rule — a law
  14. rule — government
  15. stock — goods
  16. press — to push
  17. press — newspapers
  18. degree — from a university

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