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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: nail · branch · patient · wind · fall · cell · saw · rush

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. rush — hurry
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. fall — to drop
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. wind — moving air
  7. branch — a division
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. saw — the tool
  10. saw — the tool
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. cell — in biology
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. fall — to drop
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. cell — a phone
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. fall — the season

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