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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 116 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: cap · patient · branch · stand · clip · bowl · row · bank

  1. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. bank — for money
  3. cap — a hat
  4. clip — a video
  5. cap — a lid
  6. clip — for paper
  7. cap — of ice
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. bank — of a river
  14. clip — to cut
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. branch — a division
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. row — a line
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. bank — for money
  21. row — to paddle
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. bowl — to roll

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