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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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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: mine · drill · rush · plane · degree · track · branch · stick

  1. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. track — a song
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. drill — the tool
  5. degree — temperature
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. track — a path
  8. mine — for digging
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. drill — army training
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. drill — a practice
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. plane — a tool
  17. track — to keep track
  18. branch — a division
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. rush — hurry
  22. degree — an amount
  23. degree — from a university
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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