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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 120 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: court · wave · craft · board · degree · press · branch · bass

  1. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. craft — boats
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. bass — the fish
  6. degree — from a university
  7. degree — an amount
  8. court — for sport
  9. bass — low music
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. court — of a king
  12. board — a committee
  13. court — of law
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. press — to push
  17. press — a publisher
  18. craft — a skill
  19. press — newspapers
  20. branch — a division
  21. degree — temperature
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. wave — with your hand
  24. board — a flat piece

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