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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: branch · bark · capital · mine · wound · stand · key · game

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. key — for a lock
  5. mine — for digging
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. wound — an injury
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. stand — to bear
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. key — the most important part
  12. capital — a city
  13. game — wild animals
  14. branch — a division
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. bark — to shout
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. game — a match
  21. capital — money
  22. wound — an injury
  23. key — in music
  24. game — a kind of play

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