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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: degree · branch · face · cell · wave · present · season · shower

  1. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. face — to confront
  3. branch — a division
  4. face — to point toward
  5. present — there
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. degree — from a university
  9. cell — in biology
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. season — in sport
  13. degree — an amount
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. face — part of the head
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. degree — temperature
  18. cell — a phone
  19. shower — rain
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. shower — to wash
  22. season — of the year
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. present — a gift

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