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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: saw · branch · ruler · shower · pop · tear · degree · rush

  1. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. rush — hurry
  3. tear — from crying
  4. saw — the tool
  5. tear — to rip
  6. pop — to visit
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. saw — the tool
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. ruler — a monarch
  11. pop — music
  12. pop — soda
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. degree — an amount
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. degree — from a university
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. shower — to wash
  20. tear — from crying
  21. branch — a division
  22. shower — rain
  23. degree — temperature
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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