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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: hand · degree · rule · cabinet · face · saw · stem · branch

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. degree — temperature
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. face — part of the head
  5. rule — a law
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. face — to point toward
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. degree — an amount
  10. hand — in cards
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. saw — the tool
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. face — to confront
  17. saw — the tool
  18. stem — to come from
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. branch — a division
  21. degree — from a university
  22. rule — government
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. hand — part of the body

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