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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 · degree · hand · straw · pit · rush · lash · bore

  1. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. degree — temperature
  3. rush — hurry
  4. degree — from a university
  5. hand — in cards
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. hand — help
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. bore — to tire
  13. branch — a division
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. degree — an amount
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. pit — a hole
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. bore — to drill
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. pit — in a race

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