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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: roll · march · branch · mine · degree · capital · mug · track

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. march — the month
  4. mug — to rob
  5. track — a song
  6. degree — from a university
  7. mug — a cup
  8. mine — for digging
  9. track — to keep track
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. capital — money
  12. march — the month
  13. march — music
  14. roll — a list
  15. roll — a cake
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. branch — a division
  18. track — a path
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. mug — a face
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. degree — temperature
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. capital — a city

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