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

Word bank: branch · degree · cap · racket · wave · kid

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. degree — from a university
  3. cap — of ice
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. branch — a division
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. cap — a hat
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. degree — an amount
  13. kid — child
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. cap — a lid
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. kid — to tease

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