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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: clip · branch · bank · wound · band · rash · temple · kid

  1. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. clip — for paper
  4. band — a music group
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. wound — an injury
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. clip — to cut
  10. rash — a series
  11. rash — hasty
  12. branch — a division
  13. kid — child
  14. band — a ring
  15. bank — of a river
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. clip — a video
  21. bank — for money
  22. kid — to tease
  23. bank — for money
  24. wound — an injury

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