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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: patient · cap · bat · scale · branch · bass · wound · present

  1. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. cap — a lid
  3. branch — a division
  4. scale — in music
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. present — there
  7. cap — a hat
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. present — a gift
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. bass — the fish
  13. wound — an injury
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. bass — low music
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. wound — an injury
  19. scale — size or range
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. bat — the animal
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. present — the time now

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