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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: branch · staff · mine · cap · clip · patient · charge · stand

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. The tickets are free of ________________.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. staff — employees
  3. clip — for paper
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. branch — a division
  7. charge — electricity
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. staff — a stick
  10. staff — employees
  11. clip — to cut
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. cap — of ice
  14. stand — to bear
  15. charge — a price
  16. clip — a video
  17. mine — for digging
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. cap — a hat
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. charge — in control
  24. cap — a lid

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