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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: row · degree · dip · mug · last · ground · club · branch

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. ground — the earth
  3. last — to go on
  4. club — for dancing
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. row — a line
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. club — a group
  9. mug — to rob
  10. club — for golf
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. dip — to sink
  13. branch — a division
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. ground — crushed
  16. mug — a face
  17. degree — from a university
  18. row — to paddle
  19. degree — temperature
  20. last — finally
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. degree — an amount
  23. ground — a position
  24. mug — a cup

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