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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: craft · wound · chair · nail · bound · branch · hand · bark

  1. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. craft — a skill
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. bound — tied together
  9. hand — in cards
  10. bound — certain
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. chair — a leader
  14. wound — an injury
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. bark — to shout
  19. craft — boats
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. bound — obliged
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. branch — a division
  24. hand — help

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