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

Word bank: cap · degree · branch · lean · rule · wind

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. lean — to bend
  3. rule — a law
  4. degree — an amount
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. cap — of ice
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. lean — thin
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. rule — government
  12. degree — temperature
  13. cap — a lid
  14. wind — moving air
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. branch — a division
  17. wind — moving air
  18. cap — a hat

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