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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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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: wound · kick · race · branch · chair · fine · stand · temple

  1. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. fine — high quality
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. fine — all right
  9. branch — a division
  10. wound — an injury
  11. wound — an injury
  12. stand — to bear
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. race — the arms race
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. race — a contest
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. temple — side of the head
  22. race — humankind
  23. chair — a leader
  24. kick — in football

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