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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: branch · lean · hide · degree · field · rash · land · key

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. field — farmland
  3. lean — to bend
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. rash — hasty
  7. field — for sport
  8. degree — from a university
  9. degree — temperature
  10. branch — a division
  11. land — to come down
  12. field — a subject
  13. rash — a series
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. lean — thin
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. key — in music
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. key — for a lock
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. key — the most important part
  22. land — ground
  23. land — a country
  24. rash — on the skin

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