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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 · degree · wind · hand · branch · bay · foot · rock

  1. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. degree — from a university
  4. hand — help
  5. wind — moving air
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. rock — music
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. degree — temperature
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. degree — an amount
  15. branch — a division
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. foot — a measure
  18. rock — a stone
  19. hand — in cards
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. wind — moving air
  24. foot — the bottom

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