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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: capital · deal · last · mine · firm · stand · hand · branch

  1. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — to handle
  2. stand — to bear
  3. firm — steady
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. last — finally
  7. last — to go on
  8. hand — in cards
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. hand — help
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. capital — money
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. last — final
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. mine — for digging
  17. capital — a city
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. firm — a company
  23. branch — a division
  24. firm — decided

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