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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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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: patient · land · pop · branch · stick · kid · degree · mug

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. degree — from a university
  3. mug — a cup
  4. degree — temperature
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. land — to come down
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. kid — child
  10. mug — to rob
  11. land — ground
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. pop — music
  15. mug — a face
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. land — a country
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. kid — to tease
  20. pop — to visit
  21. pop — soda
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. branch — a division
  24. patient — a sick person

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