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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: degree · spring · chip · branch · rush · wave · wake · wind

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. spring — the season
  3. wake — a trail
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. chip — for betting
  6. spring — a coil
  7. branch — a division
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. degree — temperature
  10. wind — moving air
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. spring — of water
  18. degree — an amount
  19. chip — to eat
  20. rush — hurry
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. wind — moving air

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