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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: hand · leaves · season · mug · degree · branch

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. degree — temperature
  4. hand — help
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. degree — from a university
  8. mug — a cup
  9. season — in sport
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. branch — a division
  12. season — of the year
  13. mug — to rob
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. mug — a face
  18. hand — in cards

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