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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: club · shower · object · branch · row · fine · fan · degree

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. club — for golf
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. degree — from a university
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. club — a group
  7. fine — high quality
  8. shower — rain
  9. object — to protest
  10. fine — all right
  11. degree — temperature
  12. object — an aim
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. row — a line
  16. object — a thing
  17. row — to paddle
  18. club — for dancing
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. branch — a division
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. degree — an amount
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. row — a quarrel

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