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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: mouse · straw · bank · degree · clip · perch · press · branch

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. clip — to cut
  3. press — a publisher
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. clip — a video
  7. bank — of a river
  8. branch — a division
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. press — newspapers
  12. press — to push
  13. perch — the fish
  14. bank — for money
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. degree — from a university
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. degree — an amount
  23. bank — for money
  24. clip — for paper

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