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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 · ground · safe · branch · field · prune · patient · mark

  1. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. mark — a grade
  5. degree — from a university
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. prune — to trim
  8. degree — an amount
  9. ground — crushed
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. prune — to trim
  16. degree — temperature
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. ground — a position
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. branch — a division
  21. field — for sport
  22. ground — the earth
  23. field — a subject
  24. field — farmland

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