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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 116 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: press · nail · stand · branch · lean · bat · degree · kid

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. lean — thin
  3. degree — from a university
  4. press — to push
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. branch — a division
  9. bat — the animal
  10. kid — child
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. kid — to tease
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. press — a publisher
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. press — newspapers
  18. degree — temperature
  19. stand — to bear
  20. degree — an amount
  21. lean — to bend
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. nail — for a hammer

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