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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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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: pit · branch · wind · patient · wound · band · pound · court

  1. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. pit — a hole
  4. court — of law
  5. band — a ring
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. wind — moving air
  8. wind — moving air
  9. wound — an injury
  10. branch — a division
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. court — of a king
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. pound — a weight
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. court — for sport
  20. pit — in a race
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. band — a music group

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