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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 · straw · bat · field · patient · branch · pound · can

  1. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. bat — the animal
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. branch — a division
  12. field — farmland
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. can — a tin
  17. field — for sport
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. can — to be able to
  20. can — a tin
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. field — a subject
  23. pound — a weight
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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