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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: degree · trunk · shower · fan · branch · field · suit · fine

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. When will it ________________ you to start?
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. fine — high quality
  7. degree — temperature
  8. suit — in cards
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. degree — from a university
  13. branch — a division
  14. field — for sport
  15. shower — to wash
  16. suit — to fit
  17. field — farmland
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. suit — clothes
  21. field — a subject
  22. fine — all right
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. shower — rain

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