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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 · rule · lash · kid · wave · spell · scale · degree

  1. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. spell — a short time
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. branch — a division
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. rule — a law
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. kid — to tease
  9. rule — government
  10. degree — an amount
  11. scale — size or range
  12. spell — letters
  13. degree — temperature
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. degree — from a university
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. scale — in music
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. kid — child
  24. scale — for weighing

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