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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: mine · wind · capital · stock · degree · hide · staff · branch

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. degree — temperature
  3. mine — for digging
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. branch — a division
  7. capital — a city
  8. degree — an amount
  9. stock — goods
  10. staff — employees
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. staff — a stick
  14. wind — moving air
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. capital — money
  17. staff — employees
  18. degree — from a university
  19. stock — shares
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. wind — moving air

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