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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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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 · branch · kick · press · race · degree · root · wind

  1. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. degree — an amount
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. degree — temperature
  6. root — of a word
  7. root — of a plant
  8. race — the arms race
  9. wind — moving air
  10. branch — a division
  11. wind — moving air
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. root — the cause
  14. race — a contest
  15. race — humankind
  16. degree — from a university
  17. press — newspapers
  18. press — to push
  19. roll — a cake
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. kick — in football
  23. press — a publisher
  24. roll — a list

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