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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 116 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 · patient · degree · shower · chair · bulb · fine · mug

  1. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. fine — high quality
  5. mug — a face
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. degree — temperature
  9. degree — an amount
  10. bulb — for light
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. shower — rain
  13. chair — a leader
  14. fine — all right
  15. degree — from a university
  16. mug — a cup
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. shower — to wash
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. bulb — for light
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. branch — a division

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