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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 120 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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: can · deal · snap · branch · stock · hand · wound · wind

  1. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. branch — a division
  3. hand — help
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. can — a tin
  6. wind — moving air
  7. snap — to click
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. wound — an injury
  11. stock — goods
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. hand — in cards
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. deal — to handle
  16. wound — an injury
  17. wind — moving air
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. can — a tin
  20. stock — shares
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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