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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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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: cap · rush · fan · branch · fine · field · leaves · degree

  1. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. degree — from a university
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. field — a subject
  5. fine — all right
  6. cap — of ice
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. cap — a lid
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. degree — an amount
  13. field — farmland
  14. degree — temperature
  15. fine — high quality
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. rush — hurry
  18. cap — a hat
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. field — for sport
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. fine — a penalty

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