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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: branch · patient · sharp · wound · mate · bank · clip · land

  1. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  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. sharp — with an edge
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. clip — for paper
  4. clip — a video
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. bank — for money
  7. land — ground
  8. mate — a partner
  9. wound — an injury
  10. clip — to cut
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. sharp — clever
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. branch — a division
  17. mate — to breed
  18. bank — of a river
  19. land — to come down
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. bank — for money
  22. land — a country
  23. mate — a friend
  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