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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: pound · rash · court · bulb · branch · stand · bound · clip

  1. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. stand — to bear
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. clip — to cut
  5. bound — tied together
  6. court — for sport
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. bound — obliged
  9. rash — a series
  10. branch — a division
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. clip — a video
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. clip — for paper
  15. bound — certain
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. bulb — for light
  18. court — of a king
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. court — of law
  21. rash — hasty
  22. bulb — for light
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. bulb — of a plant

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